PAINS OF INCARCERATION: THE STIGMATIZATION OF INCARCERATED MOTHERS by Victoria L. Glinsky Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Sociology Acadia University April, 2013 © Copyright by Victoria L. Glinsky, 2013 This thesis by Victoria L. Glinsky is accepted in its present form by the Department of Sociology as satisfying the thesis requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honours Approved by the Thesis Supervisor __________________________ ____________________ (Dr. Anthony Thomson) Date Approved by the Head of the Department __________________________ ____________________ (Dr. Jim Sacouman) Date Approved by the Honours Committee __________________________ ____________________ (Dr. Pritam Ranjan) Date ii I, Victoria L. Glinsky, grant permission to the University Librarian at Acadia University to reproduce, loan or distribute copies of my thesis in microform, paper or electronic formats on a non-profit basis. I however, retain the copyright in my thesis. _________________________________ Victoria L. Glinsky _________________________________ Date iii Acknowledgements This research would not have been possible without the support of Dr. Anthony Thomson. He has served as a remarkable mentor and has lent a wealth of knowledge to the development of this project. I deem myself truly lucky to have worked under his wing and continue to see him as an inspiration. I also wish to express my sincere gratitude to those at Elizabeth Fry Society for their assistance and patience throughout this project. I extend my gratitude to the mothers and primary workers who participated in this study. This research would not have been possible without your participation. Finally, I would like to thank my family for being my biggest support system and always encouraging me to push through—my parents for being my backbone and my Nanny who gave me strength. iv Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................................................... IV CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW & THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ..................... 7 HISTORY OF WOMEN’S IMPRISONMENT ........................................................................................ 8 THEORY AND THE CRIMINAL LABEL: TATTOOED FOR LIFE .....................................................13 REACHING OUT TO THE COMMUNITY...........................................................................................21 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY .......................................................................................... 26 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS & DISCUSSION ............................................................................ 34 EMOTIONAL RESPONSE ....................................................................................................... 37 BASIC NECESSITIES .............................................................................................................. 41 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION ................................................................................................ 49 REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................ 52 GLOSSARY............................................................................................................................. 60 APPENDICES ......................................................................................................................... 61 APPENDIX 1: SUBJECT RECRUITMENT EMAIL ..................................................................... 61 APPENDIX 2: CONSENT FORMS ............................................................................................ 62 APPENDIX 3: INTERVIEW GUIDES ........................................................................................ 68 APPENDIX 4: RESULTS FLOW CHART ................................................................................... 71 v Abstract Gender roles and identity are some of the most important forces that determine who we are. In prison, it is common for one’s identity to be stripped away through a series of degradation ceremonies and constant humiliations. This thesis investigates how gender- based incarceration policies have targeted women and, even more harshly, mothers. While the term ‘jail’ refers to an institution which houses those who have been convicted under provincial sentencing, the term ‘prison’ is used for federal offenders. A combination of stigma and labeling theory was utilized as complementary frameworks within a feminist perspective, producing a theoretical approach to the issue of social stigmatization of maternal incarceration. Through qualitative research, including interviews with two mothers who had previously been in a provincial institution for a minimum of six months and two Elizabeth Fry Society employees, my work explains why incarcerated mothers are a targeted cohort and how the development of social stigma is linked to criminal and social background. In addition, this study uncovers ways in which the mother can further enhance her family relationships after incarceration within the community. Ultimately, it was found that society plays a large role in determining the label that is placed on those in trouble with the law, but it is also up to the mother to determine the role of that label in her life. The investigation determined that the oppression that mothers face after jail is a direct reflection of self-stigmatization developed by the mothers who arguably forfeit their opportunities as being a respected mother in society. vi CHAPTER 1: Introduction “The way in which a woman sees herself, plays an important role in how she responds to others. Moreover, the way in which a woman sees herself is determined, in part, by the way in which others interact with and see her.” - Phyllis Jo Baunach Little is known about the consequences once a mother leaves jail (Young and Smith, 2000). Rapidly growing female incarceration rates have stimulated attempts at explaining how a mother’s imprisonment affects her children. Despite these attempts, however, research has less often moved beyond the theoretical framework of childhood development and has paid less attention to the consequences mothers face post- incarceration (Young and Smith, 2000). Historically, prison culture has symbolized oppressive authority but, nevertheless, there has been an expectation that prisoners develop autonomy, a belief that is especially applied to women (Zaitzow and Thomas, 2003). The world of the inmate is characterized by a multitude of rules and commands designed to control his or her behaviour. Yet, some argue that the female inmate is not much worse off than the individual in the free community who is regulated in a great many aspects of his or her life by the dictates of custom (Howard, 1999). It may be precisely social customs that make reintegration difficult for ex-offenders, especially women and mothers. In most countries, women constitute a minority of the jail population, usually between 2% and 8% (Bastik and Townhead 2008:1). Prison systems and prison regimes 1 are almost invariably designed for the majority male prison population, from the security procedures, to facilities for healthcare, family contact, work and training. Women’s prisons are an adaptation of prisons for men. As a consequence, prisons tend not to meet the needs of women prisoners, and women in prison are affected by imprisonment in a particularly harsh way. Inflexibility and unresponsiveness to the concerns of prisoners often results from bureaucratic indifference, whereby events which seem important or vital to those at the bottom of society are viewed with an increasing lack of concern by those occupying places each step upward (Howard 1999:4). Women in this sense continue to be at the bottom rung. Female inmates generally lost their sense of self-efficacy once autonomy was taken away. Offenders were not given opportunities equal to their male counterparts, such as access to health facilities, clean sleeping quarters, women-only latrines, and they were sexually degraded on a daily basis (Zaitzow and Thomas, 2003). Concern about questions of autonomy continues to be central to penal practices in the gender division in prisons and to the sociology of women’s imprisonment. Studies of gender within prisons have remained preoccupied with women prisoners’ social identities on the basis of transforming their sense of self from criminal to law-abiding citizen and their apparent tendency to adopt a negative image within the prison scene (Rowe, 2011). With little to no preparation for re-entry or community supervision once released from prison, the overwhelming majority of those who enter prison eventually leave prison with the same underlying personal and social problems that, whether directly or indirectly, most likely contributed to the prisoners’ initial troubles. With determinate sentencing, female prisoners have little incentive to participate in programs to help prisoners better 2 themselves. Canada is facing diminished public support for prison-based programs and the subsequent reduction in these programs, at the same time that the government is using tax increases to fund prison construction and pay for escalating operational costs, all while amplifying public safety concerns (Zaplin, 2011). For successful reintegration,