Active Citizenship and Inmate Rights in European Prisons
undefined
Active Citizenship
and the Civic Prison
Cormac Behan
University of Sheffield
S
y
m
p
o
s
i
u
m
o
n
P
a
r
t
i
c
i
p
a
t
i
o
n
i
n
E
u
r
o
p
e
a
n
P
r
i
s
o
n
s
P
a
r
l
i
a
m
e
n
t
o
f
t
h
e
B
r
u
s
s
e
l
s
-
C
a
p
i
t
a
l
R
e
g
i
o
n
November 2019
Active Citizenship
and the Civic Prison
Marshall’s Citizenship
Citizenship as a Mosaic
Citizenship and Context
Why Active Citizenship Matters?
Characteristics of a Civic Prison
Mosaic of Citizenship
Marshall’s Citizenship (1950)
18
th
Century - Civil:
Right to justice
19
th
Century - Political:
Right to participate in political process
20
th
Century - Social:
Right to live in a society according to
prevailing standards
Post Marshall
21
st
Century –
Active:
Volunteering/Community Participation
Mosaic of Citizenship
Citizenship and Context
‘Deprivation of Autonomy’ (Sykes – 1958)
Educational Level/Attainment
Marginalisation
Personal Issues/Challenges
Penal Policy and ‘emotional tone’
Prisoners’ Rights
Conditions of Confinement
Prison Rules
Institutional Dynamics
Educational/Programme Opportunities
Post-Release Restrictions
Citizenship and Context
Civil Citizenship
•
Right to seek redress
Political Citizenship
•
Access to the franchise
Social Citizenship
•
Prisoner Councils
•
Engagement with Accountability and Monitoring Bodies
Active Citizenship
•
Volunteering
•
Charitable Activities
Imprisonment and the Mosaic of Citizenship
Imprisonment and the Mosaic of Citizenship
Voting is an instructive proxy measure of broader social
change. Compared to demographically matched non-voters,
voters are more likely to be interested in politics, to give to
charity, to volunteer, to serve on juries, to attend
community school board meetings, to participate in public
demonstrations, and to co-operate with their fellow citizens
on community affairs.
It is sometimes hard to tell
whether voting causes community engagement or
vice versa, although some recent evidence suggests
that the act of voting itself encourages volunteering
and other forms of good citizenship.
Putnam (2000: 35)
Why Political Citizenship Matters?
People who trust others are all-round good citizens, and
those more engaged in community life are more trusting
and more trustworthy. Conversely, the civically
disengaged believe themselves to be surrounded by
miscreants and feel less constrained to be honest
themselves.
The causal arrows among civic
involvement, reciprocity, honesty and social trust
are as tangible as well-tossed spaghetti.
Putnam (2000: 137)
Why Active Citizenship Matters?
Promotes positive relations within prison
Endorses policies of ‘Normalization’
Restorative
Rehabilitative
Transformative
Reintegrative
Rebuilds the bonds of Community
Why Active Citizenship
Matters (in Prison)?
I
m
p
r
i
s
o
n
m
e
n
t
a
n
d
A
c
t
i
v
e
C
i
t
i
z
e
n
s
h
i
p
•
Italy:
Races between prisoner athletes and local residents
•
Belgium:
JailTV run by prisoners & university students
•
United Kingdom:
Prison Councils
•
Ireland:
Red Cross project
•
United Kingdom:
Peer to Peer Literacy
•
France:
Samaritans’ Listener scheme
•
The Netherlands:
Prisoners/local residents share skills
•
Croatia:
Car repair service staffed by serving prisoners
Characteristics of a Civic Prison
Rights – Political, Social and Civic
‘Emotional Tone’ of
Penal Policy
Architecture – Communal Space and Place
Dynamic Security
Time out of cell
Complaints and Accountability Mechanisms
International Standards/Best Practice
Legitimacy
Prisoner Confidence
Prisoner Councils – Solidarity
Holistic Prison Education Curriculum
Opportunities for Active Citizenship
Participation and Civic Education
This is why simply placing civic and citizenship classes at
the core of the prison curriculum is not enough. And of
course, simply promoting and providing a citizenship forum
is not enough either.
To make citizenship education
more meaningful and educative, to ensure it is a
learning process rather than just a learning practice,
prison education must be grounded in an ideology
that is focused less on enabling prisoners know their
place in society and more on enabling them to re-
conceptualise their place in society.
Costelloe (2014:33
)
Conclusion/s
Prisoners as part of a community
Prisons as a component of wider society
Education
for
Citizenship – Citizenship
as
Education
Active Citizenship: Engage, Enable, Empower, Include
From Social Contract to Social Compact
Active Citizenship and the Civic Prison
Bibliography
Behan, C. (2017)
Citizen Convicts: Prisoners, Politics and the Vote.
Manchester: Manchester University
Press.
Behan, C. (2014) Learning to Escape: Prison Education, Rehabilitation and the Potential for Transformation.
Journal of Prison Education and Re-entry
, 1(1): 20-31.
Costelloe, A. (2014) Learning for Liberation, Teaching for Transformation: Can Education in Prison Prepare
Prisoners for Active Citizenship? 14(1): 30-36.
Marshall, T.H. (1950)
Citizenship and Social Class and Other Essays.
Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Putnam, R. (2000)
Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community
. New York: Simon and
Shuster.
Contact Details
Cormac Behan, Centre for Criminological Research, Bartolome House, Winter Street, Sheffield, S6 2WN.
Email:
: c.m.behan@sheffield.ac.uk
Delve into the importance of active citizenship within prison systems, focusing on the civic engagement of inmates and their access to civil, political, and social rights. Discussions cover the evolution of citizenship concepts over centuries, the challenges faced by prisoners in maintaining their autonomy and engaging in society, as well as the role of volunteerism in enhancing the well-being and reintegration of inmates post-release.
Download Presentation
Please find below an Image/Link to download the presentation.
The content on the website is provided AS IS for your information and personal use only. It may not be sold, licensed, or shared on other websites without obtaining consent from the author. Download presentation by click this link. If you encounter any issues during the download, it is possible that the publisher has removed the file from their server.
E N D
Presentation Transcript
Active Citizenship and the Civic Prison Cormac Behan University of Sheffield Symposium on Participation in European Prisons Parliament of the Brussels - Capital Region November 2019
Active Citizenship and the Civic Prison Marshall s Citizenship Citizenship as a Mosaic Citizenship and Context Why Active Citizenship Matters? Characteristics of a Civic Prison
Mosaic of Citizenship Marshall s Citizenship (1950) 18thCentury - Civil: Right to justice 19thCentury - Political: Right to participate in political process 20thCentury - Social: Right to live in a society according to prevailing standards Post Marshall 21stCentury Active: Volunteering/Community Participation
Mosaic of Citizenship Political Civil Active Social
Citizenship and Context State Citizenship Structure Society
Citizenship and Context Deprivation of Autonomy (Sykes 1958) Educational Level/Attainment Marginalisation Personal Issues/Challenges Penal Policy and emotional tone Prisoners Rights Conditions of Confinement Prison Rules Institutional Dynamics Educational/Programme Opportunities Post-Release Restrictions
Imprisonment and the Mosaic of Citizenship Civil Citizenship Right to seek redress Political Citizenship Access to the franchise Social Citizenship Prisoner Councils Engagement with Accountability and Monitoring Bodies Active Citizenship Volunteering Charitable Activities
Imprisonment and the Mosaic of Citizenship Civil Citizenship Right to seek redress Limited (Depending on jurisdiction) Political Citizenship Access to the franchise Yes/No (Depending on jurisdiction) Social Citizenship Prisoner Councils Engagement with Accountability and Monitoring Bodies Limited (Depending on jurisdictions) Restricted/Limited (Depending on jurisdiction) Active Citizenship Volunteering Charitable Activities Yes Yes
Why Political Citizenship Matters? Voting is an instructive proxy measure of broader social change. Compared to demographically matched non-voters, voters are more likely to be interested in politics, to give to charity, to volunteer, to serve on juries, to attend community school board meetings, to participate in public demonstrations, and to co-operate with their fellow citizens on community affairs. It is sometimes hard to tell whether voting causes community engagement or vice versa, although some recent evidence suggests that the act of voting itself encourages volunteering and other forms of good citizenship. Putnam (2000: 35)
Why Active Citizenship Matters? People who trust others are all-round good citizens, and those more engaged in community life are more trusting and more trustworthy. disengaged believe themselves to be surrounded by miscreants and feel less constrained to be honest themselves. The causal involvement, reciprocity, honesty and social trust are as tangible as well-tossed spaghetti. Conversely, the civically arrows among civic Putnam (2000: 137)
Why Active Citizenship Matters (in Prison)? Promotes positive relations within prison Endorses policies of Normalization Restorative Rehabilitative Transformative Reintegrative Rebuilds the bonds of Community
Imprisonment and Active Citizenship Italy: Races between prisoner athletes and local residents Belgium: JailTV run by prisoners & university students United Kingdom: Prison Councils Ireland: Red Cross project United Kingdom: Peer to Peer Literacy France: Samaritans Listener scheme The Netherlands: Prisoners/local residents share skills Croatia: Car repair service staffed by serving prisoners
Characteristics of a Civic Prison Rights Political, Social and Civic Emotional Tone of Penal Policy Architecture Communal Space and Place Dynamic Security Time out of cell Complaints and Accountability Mechanisms International Standards/Best Practice Legitimacy Prisoner Confidence Prisoner Councils Solidarity Holistic Prison Education Curriculum Opportunities for Active Citizenship
Participation and Civic Education This is why simply placing civic and citizenship classes at the core of the prison curriculum is not enough. And of course, simply promoting and providing a citizenship forum is not enough either. To make citizenship education more meaningful and educative, to ensure it is a learning process rather than just a learning practice, prison education must be grounded in an ideology that is focused less on enabling prisoners know their place in society and more on enabling them to re- conceptualise their place in society. Costelloe (2014:33)
Conclusion/s Prisoners as part of a community Prisons as a component of wider society Education for Citizenship Citizenship as Education Active Citizenship: Engage, Enable, Empower, Include From Social Contract to Social Compact
Active Citizenship and the Civic Prison Bibliography Behan, C. (2017) Citizen Convicts: Prisoners, Politics and the Vote. Manchester: Manchester University Press. Behan, C. (2014) Learning to Escape: Prison Education, Rehabilitation and the Potential for Transformation. Journal of Prison Education and Re-entry, 1(1): 20-31. Costelloe, A. (2014) Learning for Liberation, Teaching for Transformation: Can Education in Prison Prepare Prisoners for Active Citizenship? 14(1): 30-36. Marshall, T.H. (1950) Citizenship and Social Class and Other Essays. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Putnam, R. (2000) Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Simon and Shuster. Contact Details Cormac Behan, Centre for Criminological Research, Bartolome House, Winter Street, Sheffield, S6 2WN. Email: : c.m.behan@sheffield.ac.uk
