HomeUploadUpload DirectHotlinkRandomAbouttheme toggle
Expand

"For Their Own Protection": Children in Long-Term Solitary Confinement

Views:1044
@ReasonVids

Go to http://reason.com/reasontv/2013/09/26/for-their-own-protection for links to resources mentioned below and more information and videos.

"Why lock somebody up while you're locked up? You're trying to kill their spirit even more," says Michael Kemp, describing his six-month stay in solitary confinement at age 17.

Solitary confinement was once a punishment reserved for the most-hardened, incorrigible criminals. Today, it is standard practice for tens of thousands of juveniles in prisons and jails across America. Far from being limited to the most violent offenders, solitary confinement is now used against perpetrators of minor crimes and children who are forced to await their trials in total isolation. Often, these stays are prolonged, lasting months or even years at a time.

Widely condemned as cruel and unusual punishment, long-term isolation for juveniles continues because it's effectively hidden from the public. Research efforts by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition have struggled to uncover even the most basic facts about how the United States punishes its most vulnerable inmates.

How can a practice be both widespread and hidden? State and federal governments have two effective ways to prevent the public from knowing how deep the problem goes.

The first has to do with the way prisons operate. Sealed off from most public scrutiny, and steeped in an insular culture of unaccountability, prisons are, by their very nature, excellent places to keep secrets. Even more concealed are the solitary-confinement cells, described by inmates as "prisons within prisons." With loose record-keeping and different standards used by different states, it's almost impossible to gather reliable nation-wide statistics.

The second method is to give the old, horrific punishment a new, unobjectionable name. Make the torture sound friendly, with fewer syllables and pleasant language. This way, even when abuse is discovered, it appears well-intentioned and humane.

So American prisons rarely punish children with prolonged solitary confinement. Instead, they administer seclusion and protective custody. Prison authorities don't have to admit that "administrative segregation" is used to discipline children. Just the opposite, actually. It's all being done "for their own protection."

Seclusion? Protecting children? Who could argue with that?

For starters, there is Juan Mendez, the United Nations special rapporteur on torture. Americans are accustomed to the U.N. investigating incidents of prisoner abuse in other countries -- which Mendez has done in faraway places like Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. But increasingly, his inquiries are focused on American prisons.

Mendez spoke publicly about Bradley Manning's deplorable treatment in solitary confinement. Now he is calling on the United States to ban isolation for minors, which he considers, "cruel, unusual, and degrading punishment." It's a recommendation he shares with the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychology.

The ACLU report, Growing Up Locked Down, is one of the few detailed, comprehensive examinations available. This devastating and detailed look at solitary confinement for minors has led to this online petition that will be presented to Attorney General Eric Holder in October 2013.

Because the prison system is so opaque, reform has been slow in coming. A congressional hearing on solitary confinement, chaired by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) last year, heard testimony from mental health experts, questioned the director of federal prisons, and brought a replica of a solitary confinement cell onto the Senate floor. In recent years, seven states -- Maine, Connecticut, West Virginia, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Arizona, and Alaska -- have enacted laws to restrict the use of punitive isolation on young people. As awareness of the magnitude of the problem grows, more reforms are likely to follow.

If we believe that juveniles are inherently less responsible for their actions than adults - and more susceptible to rehabilitation - then it follows that their punishments should be less severe.

Given the severity of the punishment, prohibiting solitary confinement for young people is a first step. The greatest challenge remains demanding greater transparency from a prison system that wields total control over its most vulnerable inmates.

Runs about 13:15 minutes.

Produced, shot, and edited by Todd Krainin.

Still photography of juvenile inmates by Steve Liss. Incidental music by ERH at Freesound.

Go to http://reason.com/reasontv/2013/09/26/for-their-own-protection for links to resources mentoned above, downloadable versions, and more videos.

Subscribe to ReasonTV's YouTube Channel to receive notification when new material goes live.

juvenile justice
,
prison
,
jail
,
solitary confinement
,
administrative segregation
,
protective custody
,
juan mendez
,
torture (crime type)
,
grace bauer
,
reason (periodical)
,
michael kemp
,
andrea weisman
,
criminal justice (field of study)
,
criminal code (literature subject)
,
todd krainin
,
aclu
,
libertarianism (school of thought)
,
inmate
,
rape (crime type)
,
american civil liberties union (organization)
,
reasontv
    Thumbnail for Remy: Obamacare Video Contest Song1:31
    Remy: Obamacare Video Contest Song
    ReasonVids
    864 views
    Thumbnail for The Tragedy of Detroit: "It Didn't Have to Be This Way"5:37
    The Tragedy of Detroit: "It Didn't Have to Be This Way"
    ReasonVids
    931 views
    Thumbnail for Graphene Hydroxide in the mRNA Vaccine Vial: Assassination of Dr. Andreas Noack17:02
    Graphene Hydroxide in the mRNA Vaccine Vial: Assassination of Dr. Andreas Noack
    AOU
    1328 views
    Thumbnail for GOP Supporters in Their Own Words Before the NH Debate2:44
    GOP Supporters in Their Own Words Before the NH Debate
    ReasonVids
    932 views
    Thumbnail for Focus on Yourself, Dudes | Live From The Lair15:32
    Focus on Yourself, Dudes | Live From The Lair
    Terrence Popp
    747 views
    Thumbnail for Just a nigger thing0:34
    Just a nigger thing
    AOU
    1437 views
    Thumbnail for Get the fuck out! Covid pigs at a restaurant in Vancouver.3:53
    Get the fuck out! Covid pigs at a restaurant in Vancouver.
    bestofpoal
    1532 views
    Thumbnail for Obamacare Launch Eroding Faith in Government as Problem Solver: Reason-Rupe Poll December 20134:34
    Obamacare Launch Eroding Faith in Government as Problem Solver: Reason-Rupe Poll December 2013
    ReasonVids
    966 views
    Thumbnail for Adolf Hitler "the most precious possession [...] are it's people"1:03
    Adolf Hitler "the most precious possession [...] are it's people"
    NachtWaffen
    1988 views
    Thumbnail for Albert Bourla on why mRNA technology was "counterintuitive" to producing an effective vaccine | Washington Post1:57
    Albert Bourla on why mRNA technology was "counterintuitive" to producing an effective vaccine | Washington Post
    bestofwolfballs
    1056 views
    Thumbnail for Impeaching Bad Presidents Should Be No Big Deal5:48
    Impeaching Bad Presidents Should Be No Big Deal
    ReasonVids
    984 views
    Thumbnail for Saving dog from clueless owner0:31
    Saving dog from clueless owner
    bestofvoatxyz
    541 views
    Thumbnail for good luck0:09
    good luck
    voatcatbox
    499 views
    Thumbnail for The Top 5 Ways Jon Stewart Was Full of Sh*t4:36
    The Top 5 Ways Jon Stewart Was Full of Sh*t
    ReasonVids
    952 views
    Thumbnail for LSD Microdosing: The New Silicon Valley Productivity Hack6:29
    LSD Microdosing: The New Silicon Valley Productivity Hack
    ReasonVids
    956 views
    Thumbnail for Let's check in on the trucker strike in Australia: It's going as expected. American truckers and supporters, you have a lot of power and could easily end vaccine mandates in these urban cities for good.0:43
    Let's check in on the trucker strike in Australia: It's going as expected. American truckers and supporters, you have a lot of power and could easily end vaccine mandates in these urban cities for good.
    AOU
    2084 views
    Thumbnail for Schindler's List0:20
    Schindler's List
    bestofvoatxyz
    395 views
    Thumbnail for How to Grow a City in Honduras, Part IV: Citizens as Shareholders4:37
    How to Grow a City in Honduras, Part IV: Citizens as Shareholders
    ReasonVids
    972 views
    Thumbnail for 3 Reasons This Election Didn't Change A Thing2:02
    3 Reasons This Election Didn't Change A Thing
    ReasonVids
    947 views
    Thumbnail for President Obama Wants Higher Energy Prices0:44
    President Obama Wants Higher Energy Prices
    bestofvoatxyz
    1003 views
    Thumbnail for Meet the Man Building Elon Musk's 760MPH Hyperloop: Interview with Dirk Ahlborn7:57
    Meet the Man Building Elon Musk's 760MPH Hyperloop: Interview with Dirk Ahlborn
    ReasonVids
    872 views
    Thumbnail for Nigger nigs out, sets off huge pile of fireworks indoors 1:21
    Nigger nigs out, sets off huge pile of fireworks indoors
    bestofupgoat
    241 views
    Thumbnail for Church Cemetery Banned from Selling Headstones1:49
    Church Cemetery Banned from Selling Headstones
    IJvids
    896 views
    Thumbnail for SCOTUS Victory: Melanie Hildreth and Sam Gedge discuss IJ’s recent 9-0 win in Timbs v. Indiana5:09
    SCOTUS Victory: Melanie Hildreth and Sam Gedge discuss IJ’s recent 9-0 win in Timbs v. Indiana
    IJvids
    800 views

points

Permalink
Reply
juvenile justice
,
prison
,
jail
,
solitary confinement
,
administrative segregation
,
protective custody
,
juan mendez
,
torture (crime type)
,
grace bauer
,
reason (periodical)
,
michael kemp
,
andrea weisman
,
criminal justice (field of study)
,
criminal code (literature subject)
,
todd krainin
,
aclu
,
libertarianism (school of thought)
,
inmate
,
rape (crime type)
,
american civil liberties union (organization)
,
reasontv
TOS  •  Add Keywords  •  Donate  •   Analytics  •   DMCA  •   Puzzle