Are Prisons Obsolete?

Book Description

Amid rising public concern about the proliferation and privitization of prisons, and their promise of enormous profits, world-renowned author and activist Angela Y. Davis argues for the abolition of the prison system as the dominant way of responding to America's social ills. “In thinking about the possible obsolescence of the prison,” Davis writes, “we should ask how it is that so many people could end up in prison without major debates regarding the efficacy of incarceration.” Whereas Reagan-era politicians with “tough on crime” stances argued that imprisonment and longer sentences would keep communities free of crime, history has shown that the practice of mass incarceration during that period has had little or no effect on official crime rates: in fact, larger prison populations led not to safer communities but to even larger prison populations. As we make our way into the twenty-first century—two hundred years after the invention of the penitentiary —the question of prison abolition has acquired an unprecedented urgency. Backed by growing numbers of prisons and prisoners, Davis analyzes these institutions in the U.S., arguing that the very future of democracy depends on our ability to develop radical theories and practices that make it possible to plan and fight for a world beyond the prison industrial complex.

Customer Reviews:

Literature Working on the Prison System.......2007-04-12

Angela Davis talks about many different points in her book Are Prisons Obsolete? She tries to convince the audience that the current U.S. prison system is not run adequately. Davis questions the United States system of justice and the prison system that currently houses over two million people throughout the nation. In her book, she argues that prisons do not solve crime and that over the past twenty years the prison boom has not lowered crime rates across the country, but has intensified criminal behavior. The injustices within the current prison system, including institutionalized racism, gender inequalities, and class segregation are thoroughly explored in this book. She also debates whether a prison reform would be enough or prison abolition is necessary. This book is a great piece of literature that exposes readers with little to no knowledge about prisons to some cruel realities.
The book offers an overview of the history of prisons. Davis takes as an example California, a state which "landscape has thoroughly been prisonized over the last twenty years" (Davis, 12). This overview is extremely important to underline Davis' point that prisons have become ineffective as rehabilitatory institutions. Although, theoretically, the main purpose of a prison is to rehabilitate criminals, economic factors as well as racist motives, quickly drove the prison system to emulate a new way of slavery. As Davis says: "segregation ruled in the south until it was outlawed a century after the abolition of slavery. Many people who lived under Jim Crow could not envision a legal system defined by racial equality" (Davis, 23). The need for cheap labor in the south incited the spur of legislations that promoted the incarceration of as many African Americans as possible after the civil war. These prisoners, then, were leased out resulting in productive yet cheap laborers. Davis touches base with racism and economic oppression issues in chapter two of her book.
As evidence to help us understand the causes by which prisons started to proliferate when official studies showed that crime rate was going down (Davis, 85), Professor Davis uses the fact that "many corporations with global markets, now rely on prisons as an important source of profit" (Davis, 85). All the data compiled in chapter five of Davis' book is important to explain how the prison system has embodied a prison industrial complex that manipulates inmates' labor in exchange for economic gain. She attributes the so-called "tough on crime" legislation to private prisons and other corporations' interests. Although chapter five is bombards the reader with communist idealism, a communist mentality is not necessary to understand Davis' conclusions.
Even though not enough facts and statistics are given in the book with regards to the problem with the system, the book offers two chapters full of first hand information gathered by Davis. Nevertheless, the book's emphasis is on proposing a prison abolition program that should go hand and hand with the prison reform movement (Davis, 9-10). She is the voice of many prison reformers who have been trying to end violence and sexual abuse in prisons, provide prisoners with education so that their civil rights are not stripped away, and most importantly, work for prisons to be part of the solution and not another cause of problem.
In her last chapter, Professor Davis proposes, not so concrete ideas to adopt a completely different system or correction. This is the book's weakest chapter since it is too rhetorical and lacks solid proposals. She implies that the amount of knowledge and work necessary to make a solid change is in fact not very achievable by saying: "An abolitionist approach that seeks to answer questions such as these would require us to imagine a constellation of alternative strategies and institutions" (Davis107), referring to questions such as "how can we imagine a society in which punishment is not based on race and class?"(Davis107). Nonetheless her ideology and optimism opens many possibilities that could in fact be effective substitutes to incarceration.
It is for all these reasons that I recommend this book to everyone who is interested in knowing the hidden problems within the current U.S. prison system and the ongoing racial segregation issues. This book makes us think whether or not prisons are obsolete. Davis thinks they are.

A Brilliantly Reasoned Critique of the American Prison System.......2006-04-22

In "Are Prisons Obsolete?", Professor Davis provides a clear and cogent argument that prisons not only are obsolete but that they have always been and always will be ineffectual for any purpose other than to oppress an unfairly disfavored class of people.

I concur with a previous reviewer that Professor Davis's book is by no means overly theoretical or academic. The explanation of the history of prisons in America is crucial to her intent to prove that prisons are ineffective as rehabilitatory institutions and to explain what prisons have become today in lieu of that. Although many people originally considered the institution of prisons as a progressive step that would rehabilitate criminals, economic factors and racist motives quickly perverted the prison system into a loophole in the Thirteenth Amendment's prohibition against slavery. The need for cheap labor in the South after the Civil War prompted the creation of legislation geared towards incarcerating as many African-Americans as possible. These prisoners were subsequently leased out as cheap laborers. Professor Davis discusses this history of racism and economic oppression in Chapter Two of the book.

Professor Davis uses more recent history to explain how the prison system has given way to a prison industrial complex that exploits minority prisoners for economic gain in a different way. She very convincingly argues throughout Chapter Five that so-called "tough on crime" litigation and the rapid increase in the number of prisons during the past three decades is directly attributable to the economic interests of private prisons and other corporations from a wide range of industries. Although these portions of the book admittedly are intermittently peppered with Communist and Socialist phrasing, one need not embrace Communist economic thought to appreciate the value of Professor Davis's arguments. Indeed, it is extremely difficult (if not impossible) to find any type of premise assumed by Professor Davis that she does not thoroughly justify and support with facts.

A previous reviewer commented that other books would serve as a better introduction to the problems of the American prison system than "Are Prisons Obsolete?" because Professor Davis does not provide enough facts and statistics regarding these problems. Professor Davis does, in fact, devote two chapters of the book to the problems in prisons and the reform movement (including an entire chapter devoted to How Gender Structures the Prison System). But even without these facts, the value of Professor Davis's book is that it proposes a program of prison _abolition_ that should be pursued simultaneously with the prison reform movement. She lauds the work of prison reformers to end the epidemic of violence and sexual assault in prisons, to provide better educational and employment opportunities to prisoners, and to improve prison conditions generally, but she also points out that even if all these prison reforms could somehow be realized, the existence of any type of prison system would be unjust and ineffectual. In other words, although other books on the problems inherent in the prison system exist that are of equal importance, "Are Prisons Obsolete?" is a necessary addition to the academic literature on prisons in that it highlights problems that are tragically overlooked by the majority of prison reformers.

For the foregoing reasons, I would highly recommend Professor Davis's book to anyone who is interested or concerned about the state of American prisons and also to anyone concerned with race and gender problems in America.

Why Prisons Aren't About Justice.......2004-09-16

This book, while providing historical context, is not overly academic and is very readable. Davis presents some startling facts about the prison as a replacement for the plantation and about the intrinsic racism of capital punishment.

The division between prison reform and prison abolition is an artificial one that need not slow the progress of either prison reform or the development of abolitionist theory. I've heard Davis speak on the subject as well. She emphasizes the need to both insist that correctional institutions be reformed AND to acknowledge that there is no "just" way to incarcerate people at the rate that the US currently does.

Read this book to expand you field of vision about the alternatives to the current criminal justice system and to place these issues in historical context.

theory heavy; not a good intro to prison issues.......2004-08-07

This may just be the way I approach prison issues, but I believe that the current crisis in U.S. prisons -- overincarceration, privitization, horrific health problems, racism, inadequate educational programs -- do not necessarily need a wide historical analysis to call attention to themselves. I am, like Davis, a socialist, but I think the mess that is the prison industrial complex can be described in a way that will make liberals, not just radicals, agree that the system needs to change right away -- and I think that this is more important than focusing on the more abstract idea of prison abolition. When I heard her speak at a prisoner conference last year, she focused on the difference between being a prison reformer and a prison abolitionist: a difference that is addressed in this work. This book as a whole is an argument for prison abolition. But prison reform is more urgent, and more possible. I find it hard to focus on her arguments as a result.

I recommend to people interested in an intro to contemporary prison issues Christian Parenti's book Lockdown America -- he is as angry as Davis, but his book provides more statistical and descriptive evidence than she does as to why you should be angry as well. Articles written by prisoners themselves are collected in the 1998 collection The Celling of America ed by Daniel Burton-Rose and 2003's Prison Nation ed by T. Herivel and P. Wright. (Note that Prison Nation includes articles written by non-prisoners as well.)

Prison activists and those who are currently reading into the american prison system should read Davis' book, but I urge those looking for an introduction not to start here.

Economics and Racism combine to create our broken prisons.......2004-02-02

Following the over throw of reconstruction, the re-empowered white ruling class in the South needed a large pool of cheap labor. The Thirteenth Amendment, which outlawed slavery, contained one glaring exception--slavery was still completely legal for those who had been convicted of a crime. Suddenly, new legislation was enacted which criminalized a wide variety of behaviors not previously considered criminal--having no job, vagrancy, no visible means of support, etc.

Once these "Black Codes" were in place, prisons in the South were rapidly filled with Blacks. Prior to the Civil War, prisoners in the South were overwhelmingly White. After Reconstruction, they were overwhelmingly Black.

These new prisoners were "leased" to White plantation owners, at a flat fee. With no capital invested in these new slaves, many were simply worked to death. The economic incentive to ensure that the prisons were full was inescapable.

In this short, but powerful, book, Angela Davis makes the case that this pattern of incarcerating Blacks, set during the immediate aftermath of the Civil War, carries through to the present. Today the economics of incarceration are more subtle. Money is not primarily made through the labor of prisoners (although that still happens). Today, the real money is made by the underwriters who sell the bonds to finance prison construction, the myriad of industries which supply the country's 2 million prisoners with everything from soap to light bulbs, and by rural America, where the last three decades of de-industrialization has left prison as one of the very few decent paying union jobs available to formerly blue collar workers.

Ms. Davis draws on a plethora of academic studies (several dozen of which are cited in footnotes, which provide anyone interested with a comprehensive study guide for understanding the historical antecedents and current realities of America's love affair with the prison.

Book Description

When Deborah Rudacille learned that a close friend had decided to transition from female to male, she felt compelled to understand why.

Coming at the controversial subject of transsexualism from several angles–historical, sociological, psychological, medical–Rudacille discovered that gender variance is anything but new, that changing one’s gender has been met with both acceptance and hostility through the years, and that gender identity, like sexual orientation, appears to be inborn, not learned, though in some people the sex of the body does not match the sex of the brain.

Informed not only by meticulous research, but also by the author’s interviews with prominent members of the transgender community, The Riddle of Gender is a sympathetic and wise look at a sexual revolution that calls into question many of our most deeply held assumptions about what it means to be a man, a woman, and a human being.

Customer Reviews:

Meticulous, scholarly, indespensible.......2006-09-13

This books contains exhaustive research on the medical and societal history of transsexualism, all the theories of its possible causes, everything. Having recently decided to face my own gender issues, I found this book immensely informative and felt a million times less alone. The scientific parts can be a tiny bit dry at times, but the information is priceless and the interviews and firsthand stories are wonderful.

Told from the point of view of someone who doesn't have gender identity disorder, the book explains all the aspects of it, even for someone who doesn't know the issue firsthand--this makes it a really excellent resource for people confused by the actions of their transgendered loved ones. I bought copies for both my parents.

Scientifically researched and very well-written book on gender variance.......2006-01-17

As a transsexual man, this book is an invaluable resource. I had begun writings for inclusion in a website and went looking for additional books on transsexualism. This book met all my needs. It offers a seemingly thorough analysis of gender identity in regards to activism and science. I got the book from the local public library (yay libraries!!); however, I realized after the first few pages that this book had to become part of my personal library. I have already recommended it to many people and would definitely recommend it to those seeking to broaden their understanding of gender and the cultural oppression transgendered people face. I also highly recommend it to those that are transgendered because it is also a great "power to the people" book. My website will be a call to action to all those that accept and celebrate diversity with the intent of changing the current political and social limitations that have roots in ignorance and oppression. This book buoyed my resolve and validated my existence at a time that I was struggling with feeling oppressed. Thank you Deborah!

Terrorism As Crime: From Oklahoma City to Al-Qaeda and Beyond (Alternative Criminology)

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Terrorism As Crime: From Oklahoma City to Al-Qaeda and Beyond (Alternative Criminology)
Mark Hamm
Manufacturer: NYU Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Criminology | Crime & Criminals | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Violence in Society | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0814736963
Release Date: 2007-03-01

Book Description

View the Table of Contents. Read the Introduction.

"Read this book to understand the important nexus between terrorism and crime! This cutting edge analysis suggests a new approach to defeat the terrorist threat to the United States."
—Marc Sageman, author of Understanding Terror Networks

"Hamm's clear writing style, careful research and theoretical insights promise to make this a classic in criminology."
—William J. Chambliss, author of Power, Politics, and Crime

"[Provides] the first detailed account of how crime provides logistical support for terrorist strikes. By blending the study of terrorism and criminology, Hamm offers the possibility of detecting and stopping terrorism through the pursuit of conventional methods of criminal investigation."
—Gary LaFree, Director, START, National Center for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism University of Maryland Department of Criminology/Democracy

Car bombing, suicide bombing, abduction, smuggling, homicide, and hijacking are all profoundly criminal acts. In Terrorism as Crime Mark S. Hamm presents an understanding of terrorism from a criminological point of view, arguing that the most successful way to understand, detect, prosecute and deter these acts is to use conventional criminal investigation methods. Whether in Oklahoma City or London, Terrorism as Crime demonstrates that criminal activity is the lifeblood of terrorist groups and that there are simple common denominators at work that can remove the mystery surrounding many of these terrorist groups. Once understood the vulnerabilities of these organizations can be exposed.

This important volume focuses in on six case studies of crimes committed by jihad and domestic right wing groups, including biographies of more than two dozen terrorists along with descriptions of their organizations, strategies, and terrorist plots. Terrorism as Crime offers an original and significant framework for explaining international and domestic terrorism, as well as how future acts might be detected or exposed.

The Terrorist Identity: Explaining the Terrorist Threat (Alternative Criminology)

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The Terrorist Identity: Explaining the Terrorist Threat (Alternative Criminology)
Michael Arena , and Bruce Arrigo
Manufacturer: NYU Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Criminology | Crime & Criminals | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0814707165
Release Date: 2006-11-01

Book Description

View the Table of Contents. Read the Introduction.

"Arena and Arrigo give us a brilliant glimpse into the 'terrorist' psyche as they detail the creation and maintenance of identity in various terrorist organizations. Their conceptual framework has important implications for law enforcement, public policy makers, and academic researchers engaged in the study of terrorism."
—Lynne Snowden, co-author of Collective Violence

"The overall quality of this book is astonishing, the ease of reading and the depth of theoretical knowledge, equally impressive. It is a valuable contribution to the terrorism literature and of such quality that it will be quoted, used, debated, and confronted by researchers for years to come. This book represents a vanguard of sociological thought on this subject and is a much needed voice in the debates on terrorism."
—James David Ballard, author of Terrorism, Media, And Public Policy: The Oklahoma City Bombing

Who would strap a bomb to his chest, walk into a crowded subway station and blow himself up? Only by examining how a terrorist understands his own identity and actions can this question be answered. The authors of The Terrorist Identity explore how the notion of self-concept combined with membership in terrorist and extremist groups, can shape and sustain the identity of a terrorist as well as their subsequent justification for violence and the legitimacy of their actions.

The book provides an understanding of identity that draws on concepts from psychology, criminology, and sociology. Notably, the book examines several case studies of various terrorist groups, including: the Provisional Irish Republican Army, Hamas, the Shining Path, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, and racist Skinheads. By making the construct of identity central to this analysis The Terrorist Identity explains how violent and extremist collective behavior emerges culturally, how it informs the identity of group members socially, and how participants assume their place in these groups completely even at the expense of life-threatening harm to others or to themselves.

The Riddle of Gender: Science, Activism, and Transgender Rights

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The Magnificent Riddle Continues
Scientific information invaluable re: gender identification
Wonderful! Wonderful!
A thoroughly worthwhile read!
The Riddle Of Gender: Marci Bowers, MD

The Riddle of Gender: Science, Activism, and Transgender Rights
Deborah Rudacille
Manufacturer: Pantheon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Civil Rights & Liberties | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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Transgender | Nonfiction | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0375421629
Release Date: 2005-02-22

Book Description

Customer Reviews:

The Magnificent Riddle Continues.......2007-08-24

What an amazing book. Marvelously written, highly informative, i was shocked and entertained, page after page.

A compassionate, humorous, meticulous and nothing short of brilliant piece of writing.

One most definitely does NOT have to be transgendered as am i, to marvel at what is in this book. As a matter of fact, since we already know what we are going through, it should be required reading for the part of humanity that needs to know, that is not transgendered.

Bravo Deborah, bravo.

Jamie Antonia Symonanis - author of 'You're Lost Little Girl'

Scientific information invaluable re: gender identification.......2007-08-01

I was most impressed with the information that was included in the book relative to my own identity problems (?). It gave me some insight into the emotional battles that have brewed within my self over the years. I wish that I had this information many years ago. We are really not male or female, rather, we are a blend of human nature.

Thank you,

Herb

Wonderful! Wonderful!.......2007-02-21

For the past couple years, I have been devouring every book I can get my hands on about gender variance, and I have read some really good ones. The one I just finished is among the very best yet. It's a recent offering (published 2005) by Deborah Rudacille. It's called The Riddle of Gender: Science, Activism, and Transgender Rights.

It is refreshing in that it has no axes to grind, and it is written by someone who is sensitive to the subject matter (she began the research when I friend chose to transition); knowledgeable of the general body humanistic thought that comes from feminism, postmodernist philosophy, gender studies and queer studies; and who knows reaearch and science (she's a science writer working at Johns Hopkins). What's more, she is uniquely knoweldgeable about the special area of environmental estrogens and endocrine disrupting chemicals like DES. Rudacille is a powerful advocate, and I believe her so proficiently bringing together the science, the history, and the voices of transpeople will have a profound effect.

As a science writer, she is, first and foremost, a talented writer. The book is especially valuable for presenting lots of different perspectives and distinctive forms of information and thought without recourse to jargon or the conventions of speech typical of academic publications.

Each chapter includes an extended interview with a trans person. Most of these subjects are successful professionals and/or activist advocates. They are articulate and experienced voices that manage to say, in their totality and unity, "We are not mentally ill. We are not moral degenerates. We are products of biochemistry, and we are interesting human beings worth getting to know."

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I learned a lot I didn't know!

Dan Mouer, Ph.D.

A thoroughly worthwhile read!.......2006-05-23

As somebody in the midst of transition myself I have devoured many of the "must read" books on this subject and more besides. At this point I have started to be cautious about my selections since similar information is often duplicated, especially in the non-biographical works.

What a joy then to read this book, which introduced me to so much new information without ever feeling like hard going!

If you think this is purely looking through research for why we (TG's) exist you are grossly underestimating the author. True, she examines that research, but puts it in the context of politics, public opinion, and ethics of the time. She also asks some tough questions that made me re-consider my position on several issues.

Whether you identify as transgendered or are interested in understanding you have to add this to your compulsory reading list!

The Riddle Of Gender: Marci Bowers, MD.......2005-09-28

This is the best Gender-related book I've read thus far. It delves far beyond the woman-in-man's body metaphor to cover historical and current theories about gender and why, like any other human phenomenon, gender is represented best by a biological diversity not necessarily aligned with one's natal genitalia. It also delves with style into recent history offering a chilling echo from Nazi Germany into what intolerance holds towards gender variance. This is a book that everyone over age of 18 ought to read. The personal accounts were also very telling. Great book.

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Straightforward and fascinating
A Remarkable Journey
A superbly balanced account
There Are Many Heroes Here
Timely and well-written

Civil Wars: A Battle for Gay Marriage
David Moats
Manufacturer: Harcourt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Civil Rights & Liberties | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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Civil Rights | Nonfiction | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 015101017X

Book Description

In 2000 Vermont became the first state to grant gay and lesbian couples the right to join in civil unions-a groundbreaking decision that has inspired similar legislation in six states thus far. But it was not an easy victory; the ruling sparked the fiercest political conflict in the state's memory. David Moats was in the thick of it, writing a series of balanced, humane editorials that earned a Pulitzer Prize. Now he tells the intimate stories behind the battle and introduces us to all the key actors in the struggle, including the couples who first filed suit; the lawyers who spent years championing the case; and the only openly gay legislator in Vermont, who ensured victory with an impassioned, deeply personal speech on the House floor at a crucial moment.

Civil Wars is a remarkable drama of democracy at work on a human scale.

Customer Reviews:

Straightforward and fascinating.......2004-11-08

Of the books I've read on same-sex marriage this is the most straight-forward and readable. Written by the editorial page editor of the Rutland Herald (where he won a Pulitzer prize for his coverage of this issue) the book reads like a novel, filled with interesting characters and dramatic moments.

Moats' thesis is that the Supreme Court in Vermont chose wisely not to mandate same-sex marriage but instead to remand the issue to the legislature. It is his theory that in the end, civil union was a preferable compromise to marriage for two reasons. First, the very process of having the legislature involved, complete with extensive public hearings, allowed many citizens to feel that they were heard and involved in the process. Second, and more important, the creation of civil unions avoided the intense backlash that might have been expected (and had been seen in Hawaii and other states) from a sweeping constitutional ruling mandating marriage.

While I disagree with his conclusions about the advantages of civil unions, the book is fascinating to read and very well written, if a bit dated by recent events.

A Remarkable Journey.......2004-05-03

Just a short while ago, Vermont wrestled with an issue that's gripping our country in a maelstrom. The end result, as most of us know, was the formation of the controversial but important recognition of same-sex relationships called "civil unions". What most of us don't know is the inner workings of the Vermont government as it came to deal with this issue, and the ultimate political sacrifice that many people played in order to ensure equal rights for all of its citizens. David Moats, editor of the Rutland Herald, describes in detail, how that all transpired in his book "Civil Wars: A Battle for Gay Marriage".

Moats approaches the story from a journalistic standpoint as he describes couples who were fighting to get legal recognition of their long term relationships. With the court siding on their side, but giving the problem back to the state legislature, the storm of politics brews quickly and deeply. With the leadership of then governor Howard Dean, we see how the machinations of state government worked to churn out the only viable option at the time, civil unions.

While being very a straightforward book, Moats treats the subject matter fairly and with respect. His handling of the gay relationships, and the people stories, is respectful and honorable. He clearly has opinions on gay marriage, and yet, those opinions doesn't shade his view of the events in Vermont. If you don't agree with legal recognition of gay relationships, at least you can appreciate, by reading this book, the intense scrunity and thoughtfulness those Vermont legislators put into forming this landmark bill.

Perhaps one day, our own Congress will wrestle with the fact that its denying a group of citizens fair and legal recognition of their relationships based solely on whom they love. If that's the case, Moats' book gives us a sense of hope that fair minded people will come to the correct conclusion; that in our country, built upon espoused principals of fairness and equality, people must be afforded the same legal rights and protections offered to all of its citizens. There simply can be no other choice.

A superbly balanced account.......2004-04-29

Civil Wars is an exceedingly balanced book about the events creating the first civil union legislation for gays in the state of Vermont. Given, such a divisive subject, author David Moats does not interject his own views per se, except where his own experience adds color to the proceedings. Instead, he richly describes the history of the lawsuit that lead to the state Supreme Court decision, which placed the burden upon the legislature to remedy "the exclusion of same-sex couples from the secular benefits and protections offered married couples."

In setting the stage for the events that followed, Moats not only vividly portrays the settings and what transpired in public meetings and both open- and closed-door legislative sessions, but imbues us with a sense of how the majority of the senators and house representatives struggled to do the right thing, often in opposition to their prior beliefs and the constituents in their districts. Given the appalling abuse they took, this took courage.

One leaves this book with the impression that regardless of whether one believes that gays should or should not enjoy the same rights as heterosexuals, there are considerable numbers of people out there that don't deserve to be part of the human race, given the disgusting and obscene activities they indulged in, in order to persuade legislators not to pass any kind of pro-gay legislation.

There Are Many Heroes Here.......2004-04-09

David Moats is the editorial page editor of the RUTLAND HERALD and the winner of a Pulitzer for his editorials in support of same-sex unions. This book grew out of Mr. Moats' interest in the whole gay marriage debate and the events that preceded the passage in Vermont of the historical civil union legislation. In this extremely well-written account, Mr. Moats covers all the major events that set the stage for this kind of history to be made in Vermont, that is, the three couples being brave enough to bring suit, the ruling of the Vermont Supreme Court and the ultimate passage into law of civil unions for gay people. He discusses the Stonewall riots, the murder of Harvey Milk, the AIDS epidemic, gays in the military, the lawsuit brought in Hawaii, the increase of adoptions by gay and lesbian couples, and the Matthew Shephard murder. He says in the prologue: In my view, the Vermont story ranks, not just with the Stonewall riots and the murder of Harvey Milk as landmarks of gay history, but with Birmingham and Selma as landmarks of our growth toward a more complete democracy."

Governor Howard Dean showed tremendous courage in signing the civil union bill into law. He conducted himself here as he did when he later ran for the Democratic nomination for president. He was open and frank about doing the right thing. There are many other heroes here, Mr. Moates for starters, who is not gay. Certainly the three couples who brought the lawsuit, their attorneys and other gay people in Vermont were brave beyond measure. There were also many fine and decent people in both houses of state government, who were determined to do the right thing by gay people and in so doing, several of them later lost their seats in the state legislature. Two individuals stand out for me--Bill Lippert, vice chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Bob Kinsey, a 72 year-old Republican in the House, an elder in the Presbyterian Church where he and his wife had sung in the choir for fifty-two years. Initially he was opposed to any kind of gay marriage or domestic partnership bill but was persuaded to vote for the bill that eventually passed, probably in part because a teepee on his farm that he had built as a warming hut for skaters in the cold Vermont winters mysteriously burned. He believed the fire was caused by arsonists because of his stand on gay rights. "It was the human dimension of the gay marriage bill that touched him. . . He and his wife. . . had learned something about life and love and death. No one was going to instruct him about right and wrong or the disposition of his soul." Mr. Lippert, who is gay, gave an impassioned speech on the House floor that many believed brought his undecided colleagues to his side: "There's something strange about sitting in the midst of a delibertive body that is trying to decide whether I and my fellow gay and lesbian Vermonters should get our rights now. . . Don't tell me about what a committed relationship is and isn't. I've watched my gay brothers care for each other deeply and my lesbian sisters nurse and care. There is no love and no commitment any greater than what I've seen, what I know." When Mr. Lippert sat down, Robert Kinsey rose and said that he had just heard the greatest speech he had heard in his 30 years in government. There are many other instances of quiet and sometimes not so quiet heroism here. The jackals of course came out too. The infamous Phyllis Schlafly and Alan Keyes, to name two, made appearances to spread their hate as well.

Mr. Moats in the last chapter of the book discusses some of the other significant events for gays and lesbians, The United States Supreme Court's striking down the Texas sodomy law, the ruling by the Massachusetts Supreme Court in favor of gay marriage as well as the decision of the Court of Appeal for Ontario, Canada upholding a lower court's ruling granting the right for gays and lesbians to marry. This book went to press too early for Mr. Moats to include the passage last week by the Georgia House-- the Senate has passed one weeks ago-- of a bill to allow the citizens of Georgia to vote in November for a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage although there is already a law on the books in Georgia making gay marriage illegal. Sad to say, Georgia is not Vermont.

Timely and well-written.......2004-03-30

I moved to Vermont from Texas in August of 2000, shortly after the Vermont legislature passed the civil unions bill. Large signs in people's yards and bright bumper stickers on cars still proclaimed, "Take back Vermont," "Take Vermont forward," and the insidious reply, "Never let Vermont be taken from behind."

Some people, myself included before I moved here, picture Vermont as the quintessentially liberal, hippy state where anything goes. Not so. Emotion ran just as high here as it does now in other places where gay marriage is discussed and performed. David Moats' Pulitzer Prize winning editorials helped maintain civility and promote tolerance in Vermont when the confluence of fear, moral indignation, and a respectful demand for basic civil rights threatened to tear the state apart. By respecting all sides in the discussion, Moats' balance, both in his editorials and now in this book, helps people understand each other, while never concealing his conviction that gay marriage is a basic civil rights issue. This vital balance will be of value to anyone with a serious interest in this issue, no matter on which side of the question you may come down.

And you'll enjoy the book, too! Civil Wars : Gay Marriage in America reads like a thriller, bringing all the characters, with their many human dimensions, to life. Moats shows the drama of people on both sides struggling with their own consciences and dealing with the often very different consciences of their neighbors. He shows how hearing the stories of real people in real situations can bring understanding and respect, even when it may not bring agreement.

And, at the risk of sounding sentimental, I have to admit that I also found this book tremendously inspiring. This is not "inspirational literature," but, like all stories which reach deep into the heart of what it means to be human and to live together in human society, like all stories which deal with people struggling to live honest lives often at great cost to themselves, this is a very touching story. Think Profiles in Courage, think Gandhi, think James Baldwin. This is human history in the making,

Book Description

On any given day in America, more than 1.5 million people are locked up in state prisons and local jails, at costs that approach $20,000 per inmate each year. Crime and incarceration generate heated, but often contradictory, political debate; voters consider prisons the only real sanction for crime, but adamantly resist new taxes to pay for them. Sensible Justice explores creative solutions some states and cities nationwide have devised to tackle the prison problem.

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These aren't the real alternatives.......1998-12-09

Instead of writing about the real alternatives to prisonsuch as less punative criminal justice policies that work to mend damaged communities instead of tear them further apart, Anderson's book uncritically describes programs that expand the state's power further, will saving no one from prison. Alternatives to Prison does a disservice to the subject it proports to examine. -Daniel Burton-Rose, co-editor, The Celling of America: An Inside Look at the U.S. Prison Industry.

What is Community Justice?: Case Studies of Restorative Justice and Community Supervision (Key Questions for Criminal Justice)

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What is Community Justice?: Case Studies of Restorative Justice and Community Supervision (Key Questions for Criminal Justice)

Manufacturer: Sage Publications, Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Criminology | Crime & Criminals | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Penology | Crime & Criminals | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Human Rights | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
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Community-Based Corrections

ASIN: 0761987460
Release Date: 2002-01-28

Book Description

Past methods of probation and parole supervision have largely relied on caseworkers who monitor their "clients" as well as they can. But, as numbers of "clients" increase, studies indicate that this model is ineffectual. The time has come to significantly rethink the approaches to community supervision.

As described in What Is Community Justice?, the aim of the new efforts is to explicitly integrate the community and the criminal justice process in probation programs. There are five key goals that this book addresses to achieve this end:

The building of partnerships between community supervision agencies and the community

Expanding the "client" definition to include the victim of crime, the family of the offender, and the community itself

Focus on places: agencies must take into account important local differences in neighborhoods

Preventing problems between the community and the client rather than reacting to them

Adding value to community life

This book addresses the specific ways of achieving these goals by presenting six case studies of probation programs that represent a practical side of the community justice ideal. What emerges is a provocative and enlightening new approach to the problems of probation and parole.

500 Vital Points to Ensure Foolproof Contingency & Business Resumption Plans (Enterprise Protection, Control, Audit, Security, Risk Management and Business Continuity)

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500 Vital Points to Ensure Foolproof Contingency & Business Resumption Plans (Enterprise Protection, Control, Audit, Security, Risk Management and Business Continuity)
J. & Masp Consulting Group Kuong
Manufacturer: Management Advisory Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Ring-bound

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Manager's Guides to Computing | Business & Culture | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0940706350

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