Prison Reform: Where does it begin?

Where Does Prison Reform Start?

The obvious answer, of course, is with us—but that’s so generalized it’s almost embarrassing to mention.

So where does it really begin?

First, we must face a hard truth: the American concept of prison systems has failed.
And along with it, our idea of producing productive citizens has failed.

The evidence? The United States houses approximately 24% of all prisoners in the world. Think about that—really think about it. China, Japan, Australia, all the European nations, the Middle East, the Far East, Africa, the Pacific Islands—count every prisoner on all seven continents, and nearly a quarter of them are in U.S. prisons.

It’s absurd to suggest we know what we’re doing when it comes to law enforcement, the judicial system, and the prison system.

Consider this: about 90% of all crimes today are connected to drug abuse. People are arrested and imprisoned for using drugs, selling drugs, committing crimes while on drugs, committing crimes to get drugs, or simply doing something reckless while under the influence.

Like many, I once believed that at least prison would give addicts a break from their addiction. I was naïve. They have just as much access to drugs inside as they did outside—and to add insult to injury, some even try to blame volunteers and religious groups for the problem. What a joke!

We’ve been told that once someone serves their time, they’ve “paid their debt to society.” Another lie. When they’re released, they often have no money, no place to go, maybe one change of clothes—and then they’re hit with a major bill due within weeks. And they’re still addicted. If you think these people have even a minimal chance of making it, you’re blind. Most will be forced back into crime just to survive. They even charge inmates for their jail time while awaiting trial. That’s beyond ridiculous—it’s inhumane abuse of people unlucky enough to get caught in the system.

Now consider this: 1.6 million men and women are currently incarcerated in the U.S. The average person knows about 250 people well enough to attend their wedding or funeral. Let’s be conservative and use 50. That means 80 million people have a personal connection to someone in prison. If we use 250, that’s 4 billion connections—half the world’s population! There are only 300 million people in America and 8 billion in the world. Do you think there might be enough people willing to stand up and demand prison reform?