Prison Changes

On my colleague, Mariahlyne's post, she talks about a need for the prison system to change. I agree one hundred percent. Up until I realized there was a difference in how prisoner's in our country are treated compared to other counties, like Norway as mentioned in her post, I didn't really pay much attention to the prison issue. But the information she gives in her argument is just enough to show a difference; linking the article which has more information is even better because you can read up on personal accounts and the ideology behind why the Norwegian prison system is effective. They work around the idea that, despite housing prisoners, they are still human beings. It also helps that most of the crime they experience are smaller crimes and not as much the bigger more violent crimes. Another good point she brings up is trying to start up a want to actually change it. She acknowledges that it could take some time, but that it's something she believes in. I believe in it too. The change definitely can't happen over night, especially due to how many prisoners we have. Looking at it from a birds eye view makes it seem almost impossible. There's a power dynamic that happens in prison--it's the guards vs. the prisoners, usually, and that needs to change. This may not always be the case, but making prison in the U.S. more about guiding and not punishing might actually help more. There's already some places who have prisons where the prisoners can have a little bit of privilege in how they are treated. I remember hearing about one place who lets criminals in prison train dogs in order to try and help them stray away from the criminal life. It may even be happening under our eyes, we just have to bring it to the spotlight, and voices like Mariahlyne's could be the driving force to start it.