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Is the Treatment of Prisoners inhumane?

Hell Within Prison Walls

Kelly Rosendo

ELA 1

Mr.Janosch

January 6
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The United States is one out of three countries to have the largest prison population. This

means we have 1 in every 100 adults are locked up. This statistic only talks about prison

population but there is also the jail population. Many people may confuse the a jail and prison for

the same thing but they are totally different things in different aspects. A jail is where detainees

who have been arrested for things like misdemeanors are hold to await prosecution or they are

serving a short sentence. Also jails are runned by local law enforcement and or local government

agencies. On the other hand Prisons are for those who have been found guilty of a major crime

like felony and are to serve a sentence longer than a year. Prisons are often runned by State

Government or Federal Bureau of Prisons. Jails are also seen to have poorly developed holding

spaces for convicts. For example jails have holding cells with a bunk bed, a sink, maybe a toilet

and no privacy. While a Prison has more of a living environment instead of holding cells it cell

blocks which is a room instead of an area with metal bars surrounding it. A cell block in prison

has a bunk bed, sometimes they may have drawers and if inmates get lucky a window.

Restrooms are not in the cell blocks but rather in a different area of the prison. Jails and Prisons

also differ on the type of uniform convicts wear, while in jail its a typical orange jumpsuit and

in Prison the jumpsuits are colored coordinated to the inmates so that officials can identify them

and where they belong in the prison. The one thing that is similar with both jail and prison is

that they both share the same dull colorless environment. A thing that has been argued about

jails and Prisons in the U.S. is the harsh punishments and treatment inmates experience while

doing their time. Human Rights activist are taking on the task of freeing Prisoners from the harsh

punishments they face in jail such as sexual and physical abuse, Solitary confinement, and more.
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The issue of the treatment of prisoners has become a major one for many human rights

activist. Those who have had horrible experience in jail or in prison do sometimes come out and

sue the criminal justice system. Prisoners even when in jail or prison do have rights these rights

are called Prisoners rights Law. The Prisoners rights law is a series of laws that protects

inmates human rights while behind bars. These laws state from cruel and unusual punishments

to discrimination against prisoners while behind bars. These laws also included the basic first

amendment rights but to a certain extent where the use of these rights dont interfere with their

status as a inmate. These laws are protected by the Eighth Amendment, the Eighth Amendment

states that every prisoner is protected to not encounter any cruel treatment or punishments from

officials or other inmates while behind bars. Though the Eighth Amendment doesnt offer much

haven for inmates because the Amendment doesnt specify what is considered to be cruel

treatment and or punishments. On the website HG.org legal resources what are prisoners rights

section it states:

Unfortunately, the Eighth Amendment did not clearly define what cruel and

unusual punishment includes, meaning much of the definition has derived from

case law. Generally speaking, any punishment that is considered inhumane

treatment, like torture or abuse, or a violation of a person's basic dignity may be

considered cruel and unusual within the discretion of the court.

Like stated before since the Eighth Amendment doesnt specify on certain things this allows

actual harsh treatment and conditions to happen within the jails and prisons. The reason this is so

important is because instead of helping prisoners get better they are only getting worst. These

maltreatments can lead prisoners to have bad mental or physical health. Some conditions may
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even lead prisoners to death instead of recovery. This is why many human activists are trying to

get help to get rid of such issues.

Many prisons and jails have a very depressing environment to them. The prisoners are

kept on constant surveillance and they are only allowed to be around the certain areas. The

reason for this is because the design was planned to make the inmates feel that their actions are

being watched 24/7 so that they can instill self discipline and control. As stated in the article

Prison Design and Control by ADPSR (Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility):

The goal is for them to learn to act as if they are constantly under surveillance.

Once this self-discipline is instilled, prisoners can be released into society with the

capacity to regulate their own behavior through a socially beneficial form of

paranoia.

The reason that such dull colors are used within prison is because they want the inmates to take

the situation their in seriously and usually colors like black, grey ,and white are associated with a

serious feeling. This though can backfire in so many ways because these colors are also usually

associated with a sad gloomy feeling. That type of environment can lead to prisoners having low

feeling making them more depressed and distressed rather than feel okay. These type of feelings

can lead a prisoner to have a very unstable mental and emotional health. This was proven during

1971 when psychology professor Philip Zimbardo and a research group conducted the Stanford

Prison Experiment. The Stanford Prison Experiment was an experiment conducted to see the

psychological effects of prison on both prison guards and prisoners. The experiment was

conducted with college students who volunteered to do the experiment, from the beginning of the
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experiment to the end they were treated like actual prisoners and prison guards. In the article

Stanford Prison Experiment, section 6 Grievances it states:

Less than 36 hours into the experiment, Prisoner #8612 began suffering from acute

emotional disturbance, disorganized thinking, uncontrollable crying, and rage. In spite

of all of this, we had already come to think so much like prison authorities that we

thought he was trying to "con" us to fool us into releasing him.

This can also affect those who are allowed to rejoin society, if they are mentally damaged when

they get out of jail or prison it will only cause more trouble for them and land them in jail or

prison with a worst sentence. Not only does the design of the prison and jail affect the prisoners

also the coexistence between inmates effects many prisoners. If inmates are surround by bad

inmates who beat, rape and are in gangs they wont be able to better themselves so that they can

re-enter society. This not only depends on the inmates coexistence but also the relationships

inmates and officials have with each other. If officials want to help inmates better themselves

and they work with them in positive way then maybe the inmates would try and be better for

themselves. Many prisoners are often punished and placed into solitary confinement which is

another component that has to do with the maltreatment of the prisoners.

Prisoner are often assigned certain jobs or certain tasks they must do in order to

maintain a society function mind. When prisoners fail to do what they are asked they are given

punishments and more than often they are harsh cruel punishments. Even though it's good for

prison guards to state enforcement and law within the prison there is a limit to what

enforcement is being taken place. Some cruel punishments for prisoners are Solitary

confinement, removed from their current job to a job they might dislike a lot, their time
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accumulated for good behavior can be decreased, and in extreme situations they can be send to a

higher security prison. The one that can have the biggest impact on inmates is solitary

confinement. This punishment is so harsh human activists considered it to be torture. As stated in

the article Solitary Confinement and its Effects:

Citing historical criticism and scientific evidence, Rice contends that solitary

confinement causes inmates such extreme physical and mental distress that it

effectively qualifies as a form of torture. This leads her to conclude that the practice is

both morally wrong and unfit for use in modern American prisons.

Solitary confinement is when a inmate is removed from his cell and placed into a smaller and

lonelier cell. This can have an affect on many inmates mental health. This type of punishment if

inmates spend too much time in a cell alone without seeing anyone for a long period of time can

lead to many of them having hallucinations, depressing thoughts, and more violent behavior.

This is one of the main reasons human rights activist fight against the jailing system to make a

more positive and productive environment for prisoners and to make them a social reform for

when they join society once again. As stated in the article Are Prisoners Treated In

humanely?:

Strict disciplinary practices, physical and sexual abuse, and neglect are but a few of

the conditions from which such activists have sought to free prisoners over the years

Though many human rights activist havent had great success for their fight they are getting

heard more. They push their case to the supreme court help gather information for those who

already sued the criminal justice system and much more.

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There is many inhumane and cruel things that go on in the world but being sent to serve a

sentence jail the person convicted knowing that they will spend the rest of their days locked up is

a punishment on itself why add more to it. This is the main reason why human activist fight for

prisoners. They want others to see the cruelty they face while in jail, they are still human not

animals. Human rights activist are doing everything in their power to change the cruelty

prisoners endure in jail.

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Worked Cited

What is the Difference Between Jail and Prison? HG.org Legal Resources, HG.org,

accessed 15 Dec. 2016. Published by What is the Difference Between Jail and Prison?, HG.

org Legal Resources, 2015.

Bindley, Kathrine. Boxed In: NYCLU Releases Report On Extreme Isolation In New

York Prisons The Huffington Post. The Huffington Post, 20 Dec. 2016. Web. 04 Oct. 2012.

Grabianowski, Ed. How Prisons Work Crime and Punishment Inside Prisons. How

Stuff Works Culture. 20 Dec. 2016. Web. 24 Jan. 2007.

Prisoner's Rights Law What Are a Prisoner's Rights?. HG.org Legal Resources,

HG.org, accessed 15 Dec. 2016. What are a prisoners Rights?, HG.org Legal Resources, 2015