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“Prisons Make Us Safer” by Victoria Law
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“Prisons Make Us Safer”

And 20 Other Myths about Mass Incarceration

And 20 Other Myths about Mass Incarceration

By Victoria Law

By Victoria Law

By Victoria Law

By Victoria Law

Best Seller

Part of Myths Made in America

Part of Myths Made in America

Paperback $17.00

Apr 06, 2021 | ISBN 9780807029527

Ebook $12.99

Apr 06, 2021 | ISBN 9780807029626

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    “Prisons Make Us Safer” by Victoria Law
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    Apr 06, 2021 | ISBN 9780807029527

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    About “Prisons Make Us Safer”

    An accessible guide for activists, educators, and all who are interested in understanding how the prison system oppresses communities and harms individuals.

    The United States incarcerates more of its residents than any other nation. Though home to 5% of the global population, the United States has nearly 25% of the world’s prisoners—a total of over 2 million people. This number continues to steadily rise. Over the past 40 years, the number of people behind bars in the United States has increased by 500%.

    Journalist Victoria Law explains how racism and social control were the catalysts for mass incarceration and have continued to be its driving force: from the post-Civil War laws that states passed to imprison former slaves, to the laws passed under the “War Against Drugs” campaign that disproportionately imprison Black people. She breaks down these complicated issues into four main parts:

       1. The rise and cause of mass incarceration
       2. Myths about prison
       3. Misconceptions about incarcerated people
       4. How to end mass incarceration

    Through carefully conducted research and interviews with incarcerated people, Law identifies the 21 key myths that propel and maintain mass incarceration, including:

       • The system is broken and we simply need some reforms to fix it
       • Incarceration is necessary to keep our society safe
       • Prison is an effective way to get people into drug treatment
       • Private prison corporations drive mass incarceration

    “Prisons Make Us Safer” is a necessary guide for all who are interested in learning about the cause and rise of mass incarceration and how we can dismantle it.

    About “Prisons Make Us Safer”

    An accessible guide for activists, educators, and all who are interested in understanding how the prison system oppresses communities and harms individuals.

    The United States incarcerates more of its residents than any other nation. Though home to 5% of the global population, the United States has nearly 25% of the world’s prisoners—a total of over 2 million people. This number continues to steadily rise. Over the past 40 years, the number of people behind bars in the United States has increased by 500%.

    Journalist Victoria Law explains how racism and social control were the catalysts for mass incarceration and have continued to be its driving force: from the post-Civil War laws that states passed to imprison former slaves, to the laws passed under the “War Against Drugs” campaign that disproportionately imprison Black people. She breaks down these complicated issues into four main parts:

       1. The rise and cause of mass incarceration
       2. Myths about prison
       3. Misconceptions about incarcerated people
       4. How to end mass incarceration

    Through carefully conducted research and interviews with incarcerated people, Law identifies the 21 key myths that propel and maintain mass incarceration, including:

       • The system is broken and we simply need some reforms to fix it
       • Incarceration is necessary to keep our society safe
       • Prison is an effective way to get people into drug treatment
       • Private prison corporations drive mass incarceration

    “Prisons Make Us Safer” is a necessary guide for all who are interested in learning about the cause and rise of mass incarceration and how we can dismantle it.

    Also in Myths Made in America

    Is Science Enough?
    “I Have Nothing to Hide”
    "They Take Our Jobs!"
    "You Can't Fire the Bad Ones!"
    "You're in the Wrong Bathroom!"

    Also in Myths Made in America

    Is Science Enough?
    “I Have Nothing to Hide”
    "They Take Our Jobs!"
    "You Can't Fire the Bad Ones!"
    "You're in the Wrong Bathroom!"

    Product Details

    Category: Domestic Politics

    Paperback | $17.00
    Published by Beacon Press
    Apr 06, 2021 | 240 Pages | 5-1/2 x 8-1/2 | ISBN 9780807029527

    Category: Domestic Politics

    Ebook | $12.99
    Published by Beacon Press
    Apr 06, 2021 | 240 Pages | ISBN 9780807029626
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    Praise

    “Convincing, creatively effective arguments for the dismantling of mass incarceration.”
    —Kirkus Reviews

    “Law has offered us a very important tool. Her careful and accessible analysis, her feminist approach, and her methodical demystification of widely held views about incarceration enable precisely the kind of understanding we need at this moment.”
    —Angela Y. Davis, Distinguished Professor Emerita, University of California, Santa Cruz

    “Law brilliantly uses facts, figures, and moving and enraging stories from incarcerated people to bring to light important and misunderstood facets of our singularly massive criminal legal system. . . . An essential book that demands attention and action.”
    —Piper Kerman, author of Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women’s Prison

    “In this timely, powerfully persuasive, and relevant book, Law looks at some of the most damaging myths and misconceptions about mass incarceration. This is a must-read for those interested in the truth about mass incarceration and solutions to address it.”
    —Talitha LeFlouria, author of Chained in Silence

    “Think you haven’t fallen prey to the myths around mass incarceration? Think again. . . . This is the book we need, as movements sweep across the US challenging injustices in policing and incarceration, to show us our history, analyze our current policies, and chart the way forward.”
    —Jeanne Theoharis, author of A More Beautiful and Terrible History

    Table Of Contents

    A Note on Language
    Introduction

    PART 1: WHAT DRIVES THE MASS INCARCERATION BOOM? MYTHS ABOUT THE CAUSE OF MASS INCARCERATION

    CHAPTER 1
    The system of mass incarceration is flawed and not working as designed (or, A brief history).

    CHAPTER 2
    We need prisons to make us safer.

    CHAPTER 3
    Prisons are places of rehabilitation.

    CHAPTER 4
    Private prison corporations drive mass incarceration.

    CHAPTER 5
    Private corporations and profit from prison labor drive mass incarceration.

    CHAPTER 6
    Race has nothing to do with mass incarceration (or, If people of color are disproportionately incarcerated, it’s because they commit more crimes).

    CHAPTER 7
    “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time.” People need to take personal responsibility for their actions.

    PART 2: THE MYTHS OF PRISONS AS SERVICE PROVIDERS AND SAFETY NETS

    CHAPTER 8
    Jails and prisons provide people with needed mental health care.

    CHAPTER 9
    People in prison “jump the line” for life-saving medical care.

    CHAPTER 10
    Incarceration is an effective way to get people into drug treatment.

    PART 3: THE INVISIBLE PEOPLE BEHIND THE WALLS

    CHAPTER 11
    Mass incarceration only affects Black cisgender men.

    CHAPTER 12
    Bringing up a history of abuse and violence is simply an “abuse excuse.”

    CHAPTER 13
    Mass incarceration and immigrant detention are unrelated issues that can be addressed separately.

    PART 4: HOW DO WE END MASS INCARCERATION?

    CHAPTER 14
    Most people are in prison for nonviolent drug offenses. Let them out and we’ll end mass incarceration.

    CHAPTER 15
    People in prison don’t resist or organize against abusive conditions.

    CHAPTER 16
    Prisons keep us safe from murderers and rapists.

    CHAPTER 17
    Incarceration and sex offender registries are necessary to keep our children safe.

    CHAPTER 18
    The system is broken and we simply need some reforms to fix it.

    CHAPTER 19
    We should make our prisons more like those in Norway.

    CHAPTER 20
    Prisons are the only logical and evident way to address violent crime and meet the needs of victims.

    CHAPTER 21
    Even if societal and political conditions are to blame, there’s nothing we can do about it.

    For Further Reading
    Acknowledgments
    Notes
    Index

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