Immigration from Prison to Public

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The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world and a majority of these people in prison are of racial and ethnic minorities (Incarceration 1). Many studies have taken place to observe why the US utilizes a system of large-scale incarceration and whether or not this is an effective system. Studies have shown that large-scale incarceration is not the most effective answer to achieving public safety; however, incarceration rates are still continuing to rise, especially in black populations. This has created a stock issue, both for prisoners and the public, as current prison system policies are not preventing re-entry into the prison system or providing substantial safety for the public.

Many Americans are unaware of issues of large-scale incarceration occurring in their own country. The problem continues to worsen because American citizens feel safer when criminals are incarcerated, thinking that large-scale incarceration is benefitting them as citizens. This has created further issues of prison re-entry rates as prisoners cannot safely and successfully enter back into society. Leaving the prison system and entering back into society can be equated to immigrating to a new country, as the customs of society outside of prison are no longer the norm for someone who has been isolated in a prison environment. In “Finding the Good Argument” Jones says, “Argument as collaboration would be more closely linked to words such as dialogue and deliberation, cornerstone concepts in the history of American democracy” (Jones 157). A focus on dialogue and deliberation as effective approaches to reforming the stock issue of US prison system incarceration and re-entry to the public will be effective in examining the problem for possible solutions.

Ineffectiveness of Large-Scale Incarceration

In “Appeals to Time” Killingsworth says, “A modern person thinks that the world, or at least the human understanding of it, is generally improving. Because of advancing technology, accumulating knowledge, and increasing information, North Americans and western Europeans are inclined to see our world as better than that of our ancestor” (Killingsworth 39). A majority of the public who do not come in contact with anyone who has been in the prison system are unaware that large-scale incarceration is not effective for their safety. Removing these people from the public makes US citizens feel safer and believe that this is causing improvement. However, this is not the case and the public should be made aware so that effective changes can be made.

The United States is currently the world leader in incarceration, with 2.2 million in the nation’s prisons and jails, a 500% increase over the past thirty years (Incarceration 1). This is creating an issue of prison overcrowding and a lack of government funding, despite the overarching evidence that large-scale incarceration is not an effective means of protecting the public. Large-scale incarceration is also becoming an issue of race with more than 60% of the people in prison being of racial or ethnic minorities (Racial Disparity 1). A study from the Bureau of Justice Statistics shows that only 1 in 17 white men will end up in prison in their lifetime while 1 in 3 black men will be incarcerated. In an article by Bouie titled “White People Are Fine With Laws That Harm Blacks,” Bouie quotes a study that was done saying, “More than half of the participants who viewed the ‘less-black’ photographs

agreed to sign the petition. But of those who viewed the ‘more-black’ photographs, less than 28 percent agreed to sign” (Bouie 2). Bouie’s article provides evidence that there is a stigma that relates blackness and criminality. This is likely causing staggered incarceration rates, with police focusing on black offenders, because as Bouie says, “we know that - among white Americans - there’s a strong cognitive connection between ‘blackness’ and criminality” (Bouie 3).

Issues of Prison Re-Entry

In “Teaching Policy Argument” Kaufer defines stock issues as, “...points of disagreement that recur regularly when people deliberate on questions of justice or public policy” (Kaufer 57). As it has been proven that large-scale incarceration is not the most effective means for achieving public safety, it has created a stock issue as reformers for prison policy recognize that changes need to be made to successfully integrate prisoners back into the public and to protect the public’s safety overall.
Another major problem with the stock issue of current prison systems is an issue of re-entry. Being released from the prison system and re-entering into society can be equated to immigrating into a new country. In “Finding the Good Argument” Jones says, “Logic is not synonymous with fact or truth, though facts are part of evidence in logical argumentation. You can be logical without being truthful. This is why more logic is not the only answer to better public argument” (Jones 164). While

prisoners in the US prison system are not actually citizens of another country, this untruthful statement is a logical way to view this issue and a logical way for US citizens to sympathize with the process of re-entering the public after release from prison. Spending time in prison leads to damaged relationships with friends and family, loss of money, and a lack of other necessities for successfully living in US society. Current prison systems do not provide prisoners with these necessities upon their release, causing offenders to fall back into old habits or intentionally commit crimes to cause their re-arrest. Statistics show that 30% of offenders are re-arrested within 6 months and 67% (2 out of 3) are re-arrested within three years (Day 2). If prison systems were to provide offenders with an effective means of re- entering society, incarceration and re-arrest rates may be dramatically improved.

Prison system reform will be necessary in resolving the stock issue of large-scale incarceration in the United States, especially pertaining to black incarceration rates. Careful use of language will be required in order to reach American citizens to explain this stock issue and why it is an issue of incarceration and black criminalization. In “Finding the Good Argument” Jones presents ways in which to appeal to an audience: “(1) to reason logically, (2) to understand human character and goodness in its various forms, (3) to understand emotions” (Jones 166). By outlining the stock issue of incarceration, including emotional appeals through statistical proof, recognizing the stigma relating blackness to criminality, and explaining the metaphor equating leaving the prison system to immigrating to a new country, writing new prison reforms for incarceration and release from the prison system would shed light on this issue for unaware Americans.

Clearly Defining the Stock Issue

A solution to the ineffectiveness of the United State’s system of large-scale incarceration for public safety cannot be reached simply or quickly. There are many factors to why large-scale incarceration is used and many factors that contribute to why it is not effective. The most important points in the stock issue of prison reform are the way in which racism is creating a staggered increase in incarceration and the high re-arrest rates of offenders.

Useful Appeals for Writing Reform

In Jones’s “Finding the Good Argument” she says, “What is often missing from these discussions is research, consideration of multiple vantage points, and, quite often, basic logic” (Jones 158). All of these factors are missing from the discussion of prison reform. There is research proving the ineffectiveness of large-scale incarceration and the large gaps in incarceration rates between blacks and whites. Bouie’s article “White People Are Fine With Laws That Harm Blacks” touches on the lack of considering these factors when Bouie provides a conclusion for the studies discussed in his article: “Taken together, the conclusion was that ‘exposing people to extreme racial disparities in the prison population’ led to a greater fear of crime and - at best - an unwillingness to support reform” (Bouie 3). This issue of race needs to be addressed in order to appropriately reform the prison incarceration system.

Leaving the prison system and integrating back into society can be equated to immigrating to a new country where one is unaware of the customs. Using this theoretical view, reformers can consider multiple vantage points and attempt to provide a solution for effectively enabling offenders to re-enter society and be conscious citizens. These offenders were once a part of the public and will once again be part of the public upon their release. Appealing to this on an emotional and human level will allow reformers to ask for sympathy and a call to action from their audiences who will be approving the necessary reforms.

Appealing to time could also be a useful approach. In “Appeals to Time” Killingsworth says, “Time becomes a position of value that authors use to draw audiences to their own positions. Authors may appeal to the past, present, or future, but the focus tends to fall on the need for

changes, the pursuit of something new, in the present” (Killingsworth 39). A theoretical view of prison systems puts the public in pursuit of something new to create reforms for prison system enrollees upon their release, allowing these offenders to be a part of the public once again and no longer be a threat to public safety.

In “Teaching Policy Argument” Kaufer says, “Instead of urging or opposing legal judgments, student policy writers urge or oppose actions...They are the judge because they are finally responsible for deciding the greater merit of one side over the other. They are the advocates because they must try to maximize the possibility that their decision has been informed, even if not equally influenced by, the analogies of both sides” (Kaufer 62). This method of deliberating on legal judgments applies to policy writers in general, requiring them to fairly examine all sides and advocate for the best possible solution. There is not one answer to prison reform that will immediately lower incarceration rates (especially in minorities) and prevent high re-arrest rates. However, there are many sides and solutions to this problem, and considering each of them fairly is the first step to addressing prison reform and using careful language to pose possible solutions.

Conclusion

As the world leader in incarceration, with over 60% of its prisoners being racial or ethnic minorities, the United States prison system needs to address the increasing evidence that large- scale incarceration is not providing the most effective means for public safety. Bouie presents a possible method for deliberating prison reform: “The immediate takeaway is that advocates might want to try different language (or a different approach) in their campaign to reform the criminal justice system” (Bouie 4). Using a different approach or different language as the focus for prison reform that does not address race in any way could remove the stigma toward blackness and criminality and allow reformers and their audiences to consider solutions that benefit both offenders and the public.

Works Cited

Bouie, Jamelle. “White People Are Fine With Laws That Harm Blacks.” Slate.com. 2014: 1-4. Web.

Day, Eric. “Project Hope Alabama.” The United States Attorney’s Office. Web. 27 Oct. 2014. 

“Incarceration.” The Sentencing Project. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.

Kaufer, David S. "A Plan for Teaching the Development of Original Policy Arguments." College Composition and Communication. 35.1 (Feb. 1984): 57-70. Web.

Killingsworth, Jimmie M. "Appeals to Time." 38-51. Web.

Jones, Rebecca. “Finding the Good Argument OR Why Bother With Logic?” Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing. 156-179. Web.

“Racial Disparity.” The Sentencing Project. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.