Inequality in UK Prisons - Essay Example

Inequality in UK Prisons Introduction Prisons need to appear legitimate to prisoners in order for them to function properly. Such a condition allows inmates to adhere to rules and submit voluntarily to authority. Legitimacy highly depends on how prison staff and other employees within the correction system treat prisoners; they need to act fairly regardless of a convict’s background or characteristics. An equal prison system is one in which prisoners and prisons have clear boundaries, are respectful towards each other, consistent and cognisant of power imbalances, and solve conflicts. If a prisoner feels that their opinions are heard, rules are neutral towards them and applied consistently, then they are likely to view authority as legitimate. Research illustrates that the latter characteristics are not prevalent in several UK prison settings owing to a number of factors; one of them is the offender’s characteristics. No doubt exists about the progress that has been made in the United Kingdom concerning equality and diversity. This is partly because of the numerous research, advocacy and legislations that have been passed over the years. However, several cases of discrimination, unequal treatment, insensitivity to special needs as well as inconsistent application of rules are a harsh reality. These matters will be examined in detail in subsequent sections of the paper. They will be analysed against the diverse backgrounds of prison populations, such as ethnicity, religion, women, children, disability, LGBT and foreign nations. Description of the diverse groups prisons deal with Prisons have members from diverse religious groups. The majority represent the Christian faith, but even within this group different sects exist and can potentially lead to preferential treatment. Non-Christian groups are the minority in prison settings and include Muslims, Buddhist and Hindu followers. Women are one of the categories that lead to diversity in the prison population; they have special prisons for their gender, so it is relatively easy to study potential obstacles and inequalities in their group. The UK has a low proportion of women in prison, as estimates show that they are only 5% (Women in Prison, 2012). Likewise, children also represent a small portion of the prison population as the youth justice board states that only 1,543 children are in custody currently. Their numbers have been decreasing substantially over the years as seen through the decommissioning of some centres such ase Rivendell Unit at Cookham Wood. Ethnicity is an umbrella term that encompasses the racial or cultural background to which a prisoner belongs; these may range from black, Indian, Gypsy or Irish traveller communities to Asian or other categories. In the United Kingdom, ethnicity has a definition that is essentially different from the same in the US context. Within the US, the black-white dualism has pervaded most literature, and using the same dichotomy to describe ethnic minorities may not work in the UK (Song, 2004). In Britain, it is more effective to use the term ‘ethnic minority’, as it covers all the individuals that do not represent the dominant cultural background of the country (Phillips and Bowling, 2003). Estimates indicate that there are approximately 46,204 persons doing custodial sentences in England and Wales; 22% of these come from ethnic minority groups (Ministry of Justice, 2011). Likewise, similar proportions can be seen in terms of the number of people in prison in England and Wales. By 2010, there were 85,002 prisoners in the region, but 21,878, or 21%, were ethnic minorities; these proportions have been relatively stable over the past decade (Ministry of Justice, 2011). Foreign nationals cover a wide range of people who may or may not belong to the European continent, yet their numbers are relatively small in prison. Studies illustrate that the total number of ethnic minorities who were British nationals in 2010 were 20% of all prisoners; conversely, those who were foreign were 63% (Ministry of Justice, 2011). This represents a decrease from 70% in 2006 while the number of British ethnic minorities has not changed significantly; it was initially at 18% (Ministry of Justice, 2011). Persons with disability are also present in prison, and include any person that has a physical or mental impairment; this makes it difficult to perform daily functions. Booth et al. (2009) report that the HM inspectorate carried out a survey of the number of prisoners with disability, and found that they accounted for 15% of the prison population. The figures were dependent on the nature of prison, as high security prisons have disabled persons representing as much as 23% while open prisons had about 10% (Booth et al. 2009). The researchers noted that many disabled persons were missing from inmate records because the local inmate database system only reported 5%. It has also been shown that a considerable proportion of prisoners with disability are relatively old; most of them are also British nationals and white. The LGBT community consists of persons whose sexual orientation or gender identity does not represent the majority; these could be lesbians, gays, bisexuals or transgender. Statistics are currently not available on the total number of individuals from this community because some of the categories require official recognition. The transgender community, in particular, complicates collection of these figures since most of the people involved do not have gender recognition certificates or may not have lived in their chosen gender roles for a long time. Whether the diverse groups experience additional obstacles or discrimination Phillips and Bowling (2003) explain that race and inequality are a serious problem in the UK criminal justice system; a quick skim through statistics illustrates that there is an overrepresentation of black people within the prison system. Many of them have been victims of brutal force by the police as well as prison officers; furthermore, some of them tend to die in custody. One should also note that there are quite a few senior minority inmates in the UK thus illustrating that they either are dying young or could be subject to lower reoffending. A casual observation of race relations in prison also shows that the judges who preside over their cases tend to be white even though minorities appear before them. It has also been shown that this overrepresentation is not equal across all ethnic minority groups; black people of either Caribbean or African descent tend to have higher proportions in comparison to persons of Asian origin. One conclusion that can be drawn from these observations is that discriminatory criminal justice processing may be taking place; however, some scholars caution that one should not rush to certain conclusions (Matravers and Tonry, 2003). Phillips and Bowling (2003) believe that the race representation issue is a thorny one because it can lead to two unwanted consequences; reinforcing the false pathology that minorities are criminal or perpetuating institutional racism. Indeed, finding a disproportionality problem within the prison system is just a starting point; one ought to be open to the possibility that certain societal factors may explain this increased level of crime in the black community (Blumstein, 1982). However, the lived experiences of inmates in prison can go a long way in establishing whether racism is being perpetuated. Chelliotis and Liebling (2005) carried out research in British prisons in order to find out whether instances of racial discrimination existed. They found that several policy initiatives have occurred over the years concerning prison contexts; some of the legislations address segregation, categorisations, transfer and discipline. These authors realised that although the policies held a lot of promise, reality on the ground was substantially different from what had been envisaged. They identified two incidences of racial minorities who had been killed by white prisoners; the offenders had demonstrated racist tendencies, yet the prison community had done little to solve this problem. The latter authors also found that most racial incidents that occurred between inmates were mostly between white inmates against ethnic minorities. In this kind of offending, prisoners were more likely to target Asian minorities than other members of the minority population. Usually, abuse came in the form of racial slurs, bullying, assault, harassment, and derogatory insults about one’s physical feature or religious beliefs (Hudson, 2002). When examining the relationship between ethnic minorities and prison staff, it has been shown that black and Asian ethnic minorities are the predominant recipients of racism by personnel. Many affirm that this could be due to the lack of black or ethnic minority staff in these settings; others believe that the problem is deeper than stated (Modood and Berthoud, 1997). When surveyed, black inmates perceive prison personnel the least-favourably compared to all other ethnic communities, and this is often because of higher evidence of racism. Chelliotis and Liebling (2005) found that stereotypes about black inmates were quite prevalent among staff; several are perceived as lazy and troublesome. The opposite was true for Asian prisoners as prisoner staff stereotyped them as model inmates; this could explain why their fellow prisoners continually targeted them. Foreign nationals are often categorised as ethnic minorities owing to their differential cultural background; therefore, problems and obstacles experienced by ethnic minorities are usually the same as those experienced by foreign nationals. Furthermore, the demographics discussed above are often replicated based on the race or cultural background of the person involved rather than their nationality. Foreign nationals often struggle with racist sentiments and mockery from a large share of prisoners; sometimes a small proportion of prison staff also behave similarly. These cases of harassment are especially true for those who struggle with the English language or those who cannot express themselves properly (Butler and Maruna, 2012). Challenges among foreign nationals and ethnic minorities are also experienced through discriminatory decision-making processes in prisons. Research has shown that in cases involving black inmates, high prison security categorisation is biased against them; this means that many of them tend to serve their terms in areas that are relatively far from their origin. During allocation of jobs, ethnic minorities get less desirable duties while white inmates enjoy preferential treatment; the same attitudes also pervade an analysis of their formal assessments (Shallice and Gordon, 1990). It has been shown that black prisoners tend to get negative feedback concerning their work skills if they do vocational training. The same attitude pervades assessment of whether they are likely to resist authority or show any manner of aggressiveness towards higher authorities. Prison staffs often review sentence arrangements; it has been shown that black prisoners tend to be overrepresented in formal action offences or referral for adjudication (Moorthy et al. 2004). When instating disciplinary measures, it has been shown that black inmates tend to receive harsher treatment than members from other communities. The same attitude is also carried forwards during inmate searches or requests for special dietary needs as well as specialist products within the canteen. If a racial minority needs to get in contact with the outside world or has a complaint or request, it is likely to be handled unfairly than if they were white. Religious groups tend to be respected in the prison community as a number of them have access to spiritual leaders if they require one in private. This is especially true for Christian and Muslim faithful; several institutions now have Muslim Chaplains and also serve Halaal foods, but this was not true in the past (Spalek and Wilson, 2002). However, problems usually arise for persons who do not belong to these large communities as Buddhists often find it difficult to access ministers from their faith (Weller et al. 2001). Staffs are sometimes insensitive when searching through religious artefacts and items as they may query prisoners unnecessarily or handle those objects improperly; this mostly applies to religious minorities like Buddhist or Hindu believers (Wheatley, 2008). Under the umbrella of religion, sometimes discrimination occurs against members of Christian beliefs if their sect differs from that of prison staff (Butler and Maruna, 2012). The latter authors found that if prisoners belong to the Catholic faith, then Protestant staff would become more lenient to those who belong to their own denomination; this implies that sectarian discrimination is a reality. Children face certain obstacles within the prison system owing to their age, but their problems do not receive as much attention as members of the other demographic groups. First, during the transfer of children from court to prison, an adult is usually required to accompany them. Murray (2012) did an investigation into the problems faced by children in custody and found that they had significantly higher challenges with security or feelings of safety. Problems with victimisation by other young people were also likely to occur within these groups and so was the occurrence of mental and emotional challenges. Children are also highly malleable and willing to work with authorities in order to stay out of prison; this requires special assistance, which appears not to be available for them. People with disability require additional support from prison staff, yet this is not always forthcoming; in some instances, they receive worse treatment than other prisoners. Booth et al. (2009) interviewed prisoners with disabilities in order to determine whether disabled persons were treated fairly in jail. It was found that although overt harassment was minimal, several prison workers did not manage their disabled inmates properly as they had special needs that were not fully met. A third of the prison population did not have the right, resources, support and infrastructure needed to support disabled persons; many of them did not have the right aids, prison buildings or community agency contacts. People with disabilities also require specialised cells, but it was found that in the UK only two thirds of prisons offer these kinds of accommodation (Ramsbotham, 2003). Having access to showers is a problem for some, and rejection by a prison facility can occur if a person has a severe mobility problem. Logistical challenges are also a problem for them during the first day of custody as prison staff are not as sensitive to their needs as they ought to be. Much has been done to improve the state of affairs for members of this group in prison; access to fast and responsive healthcare is one of them. However, structural challenges are still inherent as diversity training concerning disabled people has occurred but prison staff lacks the right resources and material to implement those procedures. Women have, no doubt, attracted a lot of attention from interest rights groups who affirm that although several laws concerning how women should be treated in prison are present, a big gap exists on their implementation. Women in Prison (2012) summarised some of the key problems that members of this gender undergo within the inmate population. First, they explain that women are placed in high security conditions even though this is not required; England and Wales has mostly open and closed prisons. Mid-level prisons with intermediate security measures are lacking, so women are subjected to conditions that they should not be going through. Women struggle with the problem of inappropriate behaviour from male personnel, but reports about these matters are rarely taken seriously or punished. Furthermore, the above authors explain that women lack accredited programmes that are directed towards them, so a number of them tend to serve longer sentences than necessary. Dignity issues are a problem with female prisoners as some of them lack appropriate clothing like underwear; therefore, their right to dignity is infringed upon. Those who suffered from prior violence lack effective support systems even though lead officers for these cases were appointed for most prisons in the UK. Most women with children are primary carers, yet their situations are rarely considered when giving sentences. Sometimes a balance ought to be struck concerning public safety and a child’s safety, but several law courts do not even mention these matters or think of them as trivial when determining sentences (Mills and Roberts, 2012). Irish Traveller and gypsies have reported stigmatisation in prisons; they affirm that people tend to mock them, demonise and harass them. Sometimes this may take the form of playful undertones in which even their inmates mock their accent or make offensive remarks against them. However, in other scenarios, the problems are not subtle; they are often misunderstood and detested by prison staff who look down on their lifestyle. Irish Travellers have reported that prison staff often think that they are unintelligent or their opinions do not count in the provision of services (Butler and Maruna, 2012). Within the criminal justice system, many stereotypes exist about the gypsy community, as many believe that their entrance into a community leads to greater crime. Evidence points to the contrary; these misconceptions mostly arise out of the media or unwanted targeting by the police. Travellers explained that police would often search and confront members of this group disproportionately; they were perceived negatively because of their transient status. In fact, the latter authors stated that a pervasive culture existed concerning members of this category; law enforcers were expected to be biased against them. These attitudes penetrate into the prison system and lead to overall harassment of members of this community. Members of the transgender community face several obstacles within the prison system largely because of the nature of the prison system, which expects distinct gender difference. Therefore, sometimes individuals may undergo gender reassignment or could make the permanent choice of changing genders, but this may not be reflected in the prison facility to which they belong. Whittle et al. (2007) report that some legislations have been passed concerning the rights of transgender people, but few prisons act on them. Some subjects often alter their gender but may not be transferred to other prisons even ten years after passage of the Gender Recognition Act. Furthermore, victimization by fellow prisoners also occurs as acceptance of this community is yet to occur; much has improved for gays and lesbians but attitudes towards transgender are still unfavourable. Discussion on whether the criminal justice system in the UK is unequal Butler and Maruna (2012) carried out research within the Northern Ireland Prison Service in order to determine whether discrimination existed there. Most prison staff claimed that no discrimination existed, and even added that matters to do with discrimination were unhelpful as they took time away from important issues. They argued that security was their primary concern, even though they had gone through diversity training, the matter was not a priority. Conversely, majority of the prisoners reported that discrimination did exist, and they went on to describe incidences in which such issues occurred during their interactions with staff. Aside from the direct views of inmates on the matter, numerous reports used in this paper have illustrated that there is widespread inequality in the UK prison system. Much progress has been made among certain demographic communities especially gender and religion; the incidences prevalent are not highly significant. However, when it comes to other groups like foreign nationals, ethnic minorities and persons with disabilities, a lot still has to be done. Racism and discrimination against ethnic minorities is a highly pressing issue that has not changed much over the past few decades (Institute for Criminal Policy Research, King’s College London, 2004). A proportionality problem pervades the corrections system, but this fact has often been treated delicately; statistics alone are not enough to deduce that discrimination exists. This is because certain societal factors may actually be leading to increased cases of crime in the racial or ethnic community. However, some experts assert that such an explanation does not absolve the criminal justice system from total responsibility as the problem could be with the law enforcers. Police authorities tend to do abnormally high stop and search operations among black citizens, so this stereotyping and targeting is likely to lead to an overrepresentation of black convicts (Spohn, 1994). Furthermore, certain social and economic factors could be causing these outcomes, so the authorities ought to do something (Waddington, 2000). If overrepresentation is not convincing enough for some quarters, studies indicate that ethnic minorities, especially blacks, tend to receive unfair treatment from prison staff. Furthermore, a number of them are the subject of unfair decision-making processes; this makes it difficult for them to perceive the prison system as legitimate. The correctional role designed to be achieved in these facilitates is thus severely undermined when such systemic inequality is prevalent (Pantazis, 2005). Deliberate discrimination is not just a reserve for black males; it also affects members of the Gypsy travelling community; the problem starts from the media and is eventually spread to law enforcers, courts and finally to prison authorities. This has been shown by confessions about prison personnel attitudes towards members of the Gypsy community; the idea that they are somehow less intelligent than others causes both inmates and staff members to discriminate against them. Institutional discrimination appears to be the key problem for several other diversity groups like women, children, non-Christians and people with disabilities. No doubt exists about the progress that has been made in these areas, but prison procedures, guidelines and rules are putting them at a disadvantage. Respect, fairness and humanity are not just elements that should be taken for granted; policies need to be instated in order to ensure that they are implemented. Transgender people also experience a mix of institutional discrimination and deliberate targeting from their fellow inmates, as policies designed to protect their interests are not acted on. Conclusion Essentially, much progress has been made towards equality in certain demographics, but discrimination still occurs with ethnic minorities being the most affected. Owing to cases of overrepresentation, unfair treatment of inmates by staff and bad policies, one may deduce that the UK criminal justice is indeed safeguarding the interests of the majority. Prisoners and staff members come from different cultural backgrounds that reflect the segregation, distrust and struggle in general society. 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