Treatment Of Women In Prison Essay

987 Words2 Pages

Women in today’s society are different than men in so many ways. Not only do many women work full time careers but they also care for children and the household. Women are also biologically and psychologically built different from men so should they be treated the same as men while they are in prison. The truth of the matter is that women have many different needs from men and these needs are no different while they are incarcerated. They come from troubled pasts, leaving family behind, and some bring children with them. According to Denise Skrobecki, Warden of York Prison, “Most women come from pasts that are filled with trauma and addiction… ” (Skrobecki, D. Interview, 30 October 2015). The women who are coming into …show more content…

Most women in prison only have 24 hours or less with their newborn before the child is turned over to a relative or foster care. There are currently 10 states that have nurseries in prisons (Pishko, 2015). Keeping the newborns with their mothers obviously benefits the mother and child but also the other inmates. Women who are allowed to keep their baby with them have a statistically lower recidivism rates. And children who are kept with their mother may grow up to lead lives outside of prison walls. There are specific qualifications to be able to keep your baby in prison, according to Denise Skrobecki, women must have no drug use during pregnancy, cannot have committed a violent crime, and have less than 2 years remaining on their sentence. As a mother I cannot imagine giving my baby up immediately after birth, so I can only imagine what these women go through to have to do that and got back to prison as well. Keeping your baby is an incentive for mothers to not only behave well and follow all the prison rules but to also clean up your own act. These women will soon be out of prison and surrounded by the temptations again so learning to care for another human early on will teach you and guide you to do the right thing for your new

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