Captive Knowledge: Censorship and Control in Prison Libraries
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CAPTIVE KNOWLEDGE: CENSORSHIP AND CONTROL IN PRISON LIBRARIES A dissertation presented by Tammi Arford to The Department of Sociology and Anthropology In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the field of Sociology Northeastern University Boston, Massachusetts July, 2013 1 CAPTIVE KNOWLEDGE: CENSORSHIP AND CONTROL IN PRISON LIBRARIES by Tammi Arford ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology in the Graduate School of the College of Social Science and Humanities Northeastern University, July 2013 2 ABSTRACT Drawing from 162 surveys and 26 in-depth interviews with state prison librarians throughout the U.S., this research addresses the processes of censorship that occur in prison libraries, as well as the roles of the library and the librarian within the organization of the prison. Most state prisons have a library, though size and quality vary greatly from one institution to the next. Wardens and other administrators have a great deal of control over the way the library operates, as they make decisions concerning budget, space, and materials. The prison librarian is also an essential part of how a prison library functions and the kind of role it plays within the institution. Prison librarians often simultaneously experience conflict with security personnel who challenge the contents and purpose of the library, while also being expected to perform some type of security function themselves, thus leading to a situation in which they feel role conflict. While many librarians see the library as a rehabilitative tool, they argue that the majority of custody staff and administrators see it as a mechanism of social control, albeit one that they are less than enthusiastic to support with resources. Both formal and informal processes of censorship occur in the prison, and there is significant variation in which materials are censored from one institution to the next. A central thesis of this document is the notion that censorship constitutes an exercise of power . The practice of censorship occurs between human beings, yet it is also influenced by the organizational structure of the prison and the laws of the state, so that possible courses of action are structured (though not determined) for individuals within the organization. I create a typology of censored materials, which fall into two main categories: (1) items considered a risk to the safety and security of the institution, and (2) materials deemed to be ‘counter to the goal of 3 rehabilitation’. A broad array of materials falls into each of these two categories. I also outline the primary justifications given for the censorship of each category of items. 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This has been a long process, and there are people who have helped in ways they don’t even realize. There are, undoubtedly, people I’ll forget to name here. To those people, I apologize and thank you anonymously. My memory fails me with increasing regularity. I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to all of the people who participated in this research—both those who took the time (and, in some cases, the risk) to complete a survey from a stranger and those who were willing and able to talk with me and share their insights, frustrations, passions, and stories of the difficult and often isolating work they do. I hope I’ve been able to adequately convey the thoughts you’ve expressed to me. I’d also like to thank two librarians who let me visit them at work and offered ideas when this project was just beginning: Forest Turner, at the South Bay House of Correction, and Christine Joubert, at the Middlesex House of Correction in Billerica. I would also like to thank the members of my committee, each of whom allowed me the room to do things a bit differently, which is something I’ve always needed. First, many thanks to Ineke Haen Marshall, who has always been supportive of anything and everything I’ve done in graduate school. I’ve always thought that she has more faith in me than I do in myself. It’s because of her that I got to spend so much time reading outside of the mainstream. (People are often surprised when I tell them that I absolutely loved doing directed studies and comprehensive exams, all of which she supported.) She’s also a sharp-dressed woman with a great sense of humor. 5 Arnie Arluke, I am convinced, is some sort of wizard. The way this guy is able to synthesize and organize something that, to me, looks like a jumbled mess (my work), is nothing short of amazing. I don’t know how I would’ve gotten through all that coding without his help. Not only that, but he does this so effortlessly and with such good humor that every time I left his office, I felt some sort of euphoric sensation that was able sustain me through the next round of writing. He is, quite literally, too cool for school. Mike Brown is one of the most brilliant, humble, and kind people I’ve ever known. Because of listening to and conversing with him, I’ve been able to develop new insights into social theory and look at my work differently. He has made me a better thinker. He is also living proof that it’s possible to exist in the world of academia for many years and still maintain your soul. And, finally, Natasha Frost has been a constant source of support, encouragement, and inspiration. I look at her in awe and hope to be able to do half of what she does in any given day. As anyone who knows her will attest, it’s as if she has superpowers. I truly admire both her intelligence and dedication to her work. And I love that she likes awesomely dark and twisted films. Many thanks also to Larry Sullivan at John Jay College of Criminal Justice for taking the time to share his invaluable advice and fascinating stories with me at the inception of this project. I’d also like to thank a few other faculty and staff at Northeastern, including Joan Collins and Mary Ramsey, who made life a bit easier and more bearable during the past years. Thanks to Gordana Rabrenovic and Jack Levin from the Brudnick Center on Conflict and Violence for both 6 their kindness and financial support. Thank you to Judy Perrolle for being the amazing person she is. Getting to know her during my first semester of grad school made me want to stay. Many thanks to Alisa Lincoln for being generally amazing and providing me the opportunity to work with and learn from her this past year. And, last but not least, I can’t express enough gratitude to Steven Vallas, who fundamentally changed my experience in graduate school. Even though he’s a lousy pool player, he’s a good friend and a wordsmith to be reckoned with (and I think I probably owe him half of my future income). Thanks for everything. I always say the best parts of grad school were getting paid to read and, more than anything, meeting my fellow grad students. You all made these last seven years not only bearable, but (much of the time) actually fucking awesome. So thank you to the coolest sociology grad students/friends/comrades around (in alphabetical order, so you don’t know who I like best): Justin Betz, Meghan Doran, Trevor Glode, Andrea Hill, Amy Lubitow, Eric Madfis (punk rock sociologists unite!), Corina Medley, Riva Milloshi (falemnderit), Trish Morris, Sarah Cope Nicksa, and Stanislav Vysotsky. And thanks to those friends and comrades who are (fortunately) not sociologists and played a crucial role in allowing me to maintain my sanity and some semblance of a normal life while writing this thing: Makis Antzoulatos, Natalija Bogdanovic, Joshua Diers, Maus Diers, Alicia LaPolla, Eric Taylor, and Katie Yang-Gang. I would also like to thank my family for various reasons. Thanks to my dad, William Arford, for teaching me to work hard and (partly unintentionally) making me a fighter; to my sisters, Kristi Arford and Wendi Hartl, my cousin, Mindi Mattern, and my niece, Ocean Valdez, for always being there for me, even when things were unimaginably awful—I would very likely 7 not be alive today without them; and to my grandmother, Esther Crusan Arford, who was tough as nails and had a heart of gold. I’ll miss her until the day I die. I’d also like to thank my “adopted” family, Tina and AC DeVilliers for their love and constant support. And finally, to my companion, Lord Owen Leif William McLean: Thank you for putting up with me and for always generously supplying plenty of love, laughter, booze, and rock-n-roll. You’ll never know how much it helped not to have to worry about shit like doing the dishes and the laundry. I would’ve been living in squalor without your help. (And this guy can type one hell of a references list to boot.) Much love, Lady Skullsplitter. 8 TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………………...3 Acknowledgments…..…………………………………………………………………………….5 Table of Contents……..……………………………………………………………………….….9 Chapter 1: Introduction………………………………………………………………………….12 Censorship as exercise of power and violation of rights………………………………...13 The prison library as a neglected space with potential for increasing literacy…..………15 Research questions…………………………………………………………….…………18 Chapter 2: Contextualizing the Research……………………………………………………...…22 A brief history of prison libraries………………………………………………………...22 An overview of censorship practices…………………………………………………….28 Access to reading and law materials in prisons………………………………………….44 Chapter 3: Research Design, Methodology, and Theoretical Framework……………….………55 Research design and methodology………………………………………………………55 Theoretical