From today's Los Angeles Times: Prison Rape isn't a punch line...

[CaliforniaPeggy]

Smirking at sexual attacks on inmates makes us all less safe.
By Ezra Klein
March 30, 2008
'From the studio that brought you 'Brokeback Mountain,' " intones the preview for the light comedy "Let's Go To Prison," "comes a penetrating look at the American penal system." In case that was too subtle for you, the DVD box features a dropped bar of soap, just waiting for some poor inmate to bend over to pick it up -- and suffer a hilarious sexual assault in the process.

Or maybe you're not feeling up for a movie. It's more of a board-game afternoon. How about picking up "Don't Drop the Soap," a board game created by the son of Gov. Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas. The game "is simply intended for entertainment," said Nicole Corcoran, the governor's spokeswoman. What, after all, could be more entertaining then trying to "avoid being cornered by the Aryans in the shower room" (one of the goals of the game, according to its promotional material)?

Here in Washington, however, the weather has been beautiful lately, so if you were bored last week, you might have wanted to do something out of the house. One option would have been going down to the Department of Justice, where, on the third floor, officials were holding hearings on prison rape, interrogating administrators from some of the worst prisons in the nation about the abuses that go on within their walls.

These hearings are held annually. This year's transcripts aren't online yet, but in 2006 you could have heard a man named Clinton explain, "I had no choice but to enter into a relationship with another inmate in my dorm in order to keep the rest of them off of me. In exchange for his protection from other inmates, I had to be with him sexually any time he demanded it. It was so humiliating, and I often cried silently at night in my bed ... but dealing with one is better than having 10 or more men demanding sex from you at any given time."

More at link:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-op-klein30mar30,0,2240882.story

[JTG of the PRB]

1. Awful. Just awful.

Our prison systems are so messed up, it's not even funny. We have the highest prison population on the planet, and we don't even keep stuff like this in check. I suppose once you commit a crime, it doesn't matter if you're a human being - dignity, respect, and safety are no longer considered important. there are a lot of bad people that should be in prison, but keep the system under check and keep the violent criminals separated from the rest of the population!

There are so many problems in this country that need to be fixed right now, and the entire prison system is among one of the bigger ones.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. Everything you've said is the truth...

It just makes me sick...

And the waste of human lives...

I always wonder what we could have done to have prevented all this...

[TheMightyFavog]

8. What do you do with a society that feels that...

Prison rape is a justifiable form of well- deserved under-the-table justice?

[JTG of the PRB]

10. That is a very good question, and I wish I had an answer to it.

[EOTE]

51. Did you read the quote by Huckabee?

My god. I wasn't sure if he was condemning or condoning the practice at first, but after reading it fully, what a sick, sick freak. That asshole actually has the nerve to call himself a Christian after spewing that evil, hateful shit? Tell me Mike, who would Jesus prison rape?

[MsLeopard]

38. But....

if you commit a crime while being a rich white male - well, it's okay then. It's only a crime commited by someone who is not rich, white and male that gets you into trouble. Welcome to Murka.

[dawgman]

48. Rich is the key word there

not white or male. Reference OJ Simpson.

Most of the problems that we attribute to race these days is actually a symptom of socio-economics.

Not to make light of the racism inherent in the system but it all really boils down to how much money you have.

[zonkers]

3. Remember that Western Union "Send Money" commercial a few years back? It

had a nervous guy in jail calling a family member, nervous because a biker dude was eyeballing him in a suggestive manner? It always repulsed me.

As someone who has visited incarcerated friends, I find these types of jokes disgusting. Prison is a sad place.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

4. Actually, sorry, I don't remember it...

But your description is so vivid, I can see it...

Prisons are sad places, indeed....

The waste of human lives is appalling...

[zonkers]

12. Our culture of incarceration is awful. The toll it takes on the lives of loved ones...

having to live with the stigma and shame of an imprisoned love one. The pain, knowing they are in pain and there's not a thing you can do about it. Having to travel miles to visit them and wait forever to see them. It is brutal and eats up days of your lives.

Of course, many belong in prison. But non-violent offenders and short timers should not be kept with violent criminals. Another dirty secret about prisons is how they overcharge in the commissary for things like toothpaste, cookies, razors, etc. Inmates pay top dollar for fifth rate items made in China. And fifth rate is being kind. Whew, don't get me started, dear Peggy.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

13. You know I'm here for you...

Vent all you like, sweetie...:hug:

[zonkers]

16. Thanks. And let's not forget the mental toll it takes on prison employees. I have

no idea what the answer is.

[Nutmegger]

5. Our prison system is so screwed up, and this is one of the things that's wrong with it.

This and that fact that I see people defending prison rape, even here on DU. I abhor all forms of prison violence / rape and it can never be justified.

Like it or not, most of these inmates will be released eventually. For most it's only a matter of time.

R&K, and bookmarked. Thanks for posting.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

7. Thank YOU for the K&R...

I do hope that many will read this, and have their eyes opened...

I agree totally with your views on prison violence/rape...

It is one of the darkest aspects of our society.

[cbayer]

6. It's so wrong and so long ignored.

People make jokes about it because they just can't deal with it.

Thanks for posting. :hi:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

9. I always try to bring something that needs illuminating...

And this is a biggie...

Thank you for your comments! :hi:

[NashVegas]

11. I Think That's Very True

Someone filed a lawsuit against CCA the other day because he was attacked and had an ear get ripped off; when medical help finally came, they ignored his request to pack it in ice to re-attach it.

Someone commented on the article, pointing out that it's taxpayer responsibility to see that inmates get adequate safety and care, but no one really wants to hear about it.

[gollygee]

14. No one deserves to be raped

And rape is never a joke.

K&R

[CaliforniaPeggy]

15. I agree!

Thank you...

[riverdeep]

17. The jokes have become part of cultural infrastructure now.

It's very hard to budge. I hate those jokes, and the wink wink attitude.

Prison is basically a University for criminals. Talk to the people that work at the worst prisons and they'll tell you, the prisoners are in charge. People who in the beginning might have had a chance at being reformed, once they enter the system, become so hardened, make so many wrong connections, and do so many awful things that many don't even have a choice in doing, that it's writing off another life. Gang members who go to prison get a boost in status. To go to prison is a good thing in their eyes! All these things contribute to making a better criminal, exactly what you didn't want.

The argument is also, 'well, they deserve it'. Putting aside the concept that nobody deserves it for a moment, the ones who are doing the assault are the most wicked ones in there, and the ones being assaulted are often the least violent, at least to start.

Another aspect is this being done among men. Men have loudly and proudly been telling the world they have no feelings. Unfortunately, people have come to believe them.

Prison reform always seems to be last on the list of issues to tackle. There's a limited amount of time and money (getting tighter under this cloud of an administration), and other things always seem more important. Don't misconstrue this as having any sympathy for the acts of violent criminals, but our system is broken, not just in mild disrepair, but shattered on the ground in millions of pieces.

“A society should be judged not by how it treats its outstanding citizens but by how it treats its criminals.” -Dostoevsky

[CaliforniaPeggy]

18. Thank you...

Your points are all very well taken...

[varkam]

19. K&R

It's a system that is long in need of an overhaul. We send those among us to prison who cause suffering to others, and in turn get a heaping helping of suffering themselves. Not to say that they don't "deserve" it (for the retributivists among us), but that it isn't going to make us any safer in the long run. We're dealing with a 70% general recidivism rate and, like it or not, the vast majority of these people are going to see the light of day again - in your back yard. I think perhaps it's time we start focusing on actually trying to help these people as opposed to engaging in practices that satisfy our own bloodlust and need for revenge.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

20. My dear varkam...

You speak the truth here...

Why is it so hard to hear?

Thank you...

[varkam]

21. I have my theories...

The people who are so insistent on making prisons as terrible as possible are people who like to believe in the fantasy that there is some gigantic difference between "us" and "them"; that "we" could never do such terrible things and "they" are, essentially, sub-human. They don't want to hear it because it threatens one of the ways in which they try to convince themselves that they are moral individuals.

At least, that's my thought.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

22. That sounds about right...

And they could not be more wrong.

I appreciate your input.

[tblue37]

25. A lot of people in prison are nonviolent people who were arrested

for possessing weed. They don't belong in prison at all.

[flygal]

28. very well said. eom

[donheld]

23. Peggy, what kills me is

We are sending kids as young as 14 into these hell holes. I know these kids have done some terrible things, but I cannot believe sending kids to these places is the right thing to do.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

32. My dear donheld...

I agree!

Kids that young need special handling...

There has got to be a better way!

I just don't know what it is...

How do other countries handle this?

[Skittles]

24. THANK YOU

OMG PEOPLE WHO THINK PRISON RAPE IS FUNNY, they make me feel SICK. There's been plenty of that kind of ignorance right here in DU; I imagine it is pretty widespread in the general public. :puke:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

34. You're welcome, my dear Skittles...

The whole thing makes me feel sick too...

This just shows me how fucked up we are as a nation...

Our attitudes towards sex are horrifying...

And how we see prison rape is beyond that.

[tblue37]

26. I used to admire our Governor Sebelius, but when she indicated that she

ws "proud" of her son's creativity in designing that game and bringing it to market, I lost respect for her.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

35. I keep wondering...

What was she thinking?

And her son...how could he?

They're supposed to be progressive?

[NM Independent]

27. That's some seriously scary %(*#

I just don't believe that those who condone this sort of thing have the capability of putting themselves in the shoes of another. Some people just don't get it.

[readmoreoften]

29. So Brokeback Mountain is like Prison Rape?

A sincere love story about two cowboys is like the rape scene in American History X? So then is the Titanic is like Silence of the Lambs?

[Toucano]

31. It doesn't say that.

It says they're from the same studio, which is intended to point out the irony - precisely because they are so completely different.

[Divine Discontent]

45. it says "intones the preview" so the connotation

is there that they're along the same lines in some way, esp. if one hadn't seen brokeback mountain, thus why else imply it's from the same people. I find the thought of prison rape so disturbing, especially as a gay man. I have had friends who were drop-dead attractive and I often worried about them doing things they shouldn't and having to go to even jail. How and WHY our jails and guards turn a blind eye to sexual assault is mind-boggling. Perverts and/or guys just happy to keep the inmates not mad at them.

[flashl]

30. K&R

[Echo In Light]

33. K&R

[jgraz]

36. Thanks for posting this, Peggy.

K&R. :thumbsup:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

37. My dear jgraz...

I'm so glad I did...

Thank you!

[byronius]

39. I remember 'Donny the Punk's' story, posted on DU.

Pretty damned horrifying. This all needs to stop now, along with torture and illegal domestic surveillance.

[pinto]

40. Kick.

Too long a snicker and innuendo issue.

Thanks for the post.

[Qutzupalotl]

41. Prison rape constitutes cruel and unusual punishment

if officials know about it and don't try to stop it.

[Bluenorthwest]

42. Thanks for posting this Peggy

And the issue like all prisoner issues is sadly forgotten and in fact made to be a subject of jest.

[skygazer]

43. Thank you, Peggy - I get so irritated when people joke about this

And it happens all too often - here on DU, too.

I am far more offended by jokes about prison rape than I am about threads concerning the mating habits of ducks. Sometimes this place kills me. :eyes:

[aikoaiko]

44. I remember reading some basic human factors stuff that was successful at reducing prison rape

I'd have to look for it, but my point is that new prisons are being (or should be) designed to minimize such incidents.

While I support efforts to reduce prison rape, I am generally opposed to efforts that say it is IMPOSSIBLE for the topic to be depicted humorously. Great comedians can do it without being disrespectful or minimizing the reality of a topic.

[happygoluckytoyou]

46. PRISON? GOP TRAINING GROUND...torture and sexual abuse

[Swagman]

47. the prisons should be sued for aiding and abetting rape aand assault

[0007]

49. bttft and recommend with many kudos for a great post.

[0007]

50. Prison is another form of Club Med for some members of our society.

Larry Craig would have made one hell of a 'The chief administrative official of a prison. And BC would have been like a hog in heaven as a 'Maintenance Man' in a school for wayward girls, a real sanctuary for sure!

[D23MIURG23]

52. Very interesting article.

Thanks for that.

:kick:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

53. Thank you all so much for your comments...

I had no idea this would strike such a nerve when I posted it on Sunday...

I appreciate more than I can say the dialogue this has started...