SOC219H5 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: False Dilemma, Refinery29, Subculture
SOC219; Lecture 8 - Reintegration and Addressing Gender-Specific Needs
Last Class;
● Incarcerating women
● Historical look and early reforms
● Andrew Mercer Reformatory
● Kingston Pen and P4W
● Creating Choices
● Current Rates of Imprisonment
● Rehabilitation and Women’s needs
● Current Issues
Key Takeaways;
● Prison reforms were guided by wealthy white women looking to restore female offender
into ‘daughterly subjects’
● Maternal discipline and later ‘women centeredness’ works to disguise the punitive nature
of women’s prisons and create a false dichotomy between men’s and women’s
incarceration
● Indigenous women are vastly over-represented in Canadian prisons - both federally and
provincially
● Research continually shows that women have unique needs that must be addressed for
prison to be effective
● Current needs; housing transgender inmates, the mental health crises (in both women
and men’s prisons) and the disproportionate amount of indigenous inmates
Current Rates of Female Imprisonment
● 13% of those in provincial/territorial custody = women
○ 38% of women in provincial/territorial custody = indigenous women
● 7% of those in Federal custody = women
○ 31% of women in Federal custody = indigenous women
○ The over-representation of indigenous adults in custody is more pronounced for
women than men
○ Fastest growing population
Rehabilitation;
● Target issues that led woman to commit crime
● Traditionally, women seen as UNWORTHY of training/programming
○ Poor in quality and quantity compared to male offenders
○ Not major breadwinners - so training isn’t a top priority
○ Small prison population - not given much thought in terms of how needs are
addressed so poor quality prisons
● Typically sexist
Document Summary
Soc219; lecture 8 - reintegration and addressing gender-specific needs. Prison reforms were guided by wealthy white women looking to restore female offender into daughterly subjects". Maternal discipline and later women centeredness" works to disguise the punitive nature of women"s prisons and create a false dichotomy between men"s and women"s incarceration. Indigenous women are vastly over-represented in canadian prisons - both federally and provincially. Research continually shows that women have unique needs that must be addressed for prison to be effective. Current needs; housing transgender inmates, the mental health crises (in both women and men"s prisons) and the disproportionate amount of indigenous inmates. 13% of those in provincial/territorial custody = women. 38% of women in provincial/territorial custody = indigenous women. 7% of those in federal custody = women. 31% of women in federal custody = indigenous women. The over-representation of indigenous adults in custody is more pronounced for women than men. Target issues that led woman to commit crime.
