Pros And Cons Of Prison Incarceration

Incarceration grounds itself in the complete subordination and demonization of marginalized communities. Firmly established in the ideological, political, and social life of the U.S., the prison industrial complex has generated an enormous profit through the exploitation of queer and gender non-conforming bodies. Eric A. Stanley and Dean Spade’s scholarly journal “Queering Prison Abolition, Now?” underscore the reproduction of gender roles and white supremacy both within and outside the prison walls. By examining the roles of power dynamics and scrutinizing how prison systems function through a queer intersectional lens, scholars can provide a discourse that counters the purported “rehabilitation” process of incarceration. Likewise, Angela

Most notably, providing analyses through a queer abolitionist lens can provide alternatives that aim to reduce crime, reduce federal fund usage, and strengthen vulnerable communities. By applying queer abolition and restorative justice to pedagogies, schools can apply support systems that rely on healing rather than revenge. Recognizing that prisons are not the only solution to solving social and economic issues is a promising start in envisioning a society that does not purposely exile marginalized communities. Education systems, then, must first view the carceral state as a retributive, punitive, and violent mechanism that relies on hierarchy rather than a continuum. As both Cox, Davis, and Stanley take on the abolitionist perspective, reducing the reliance on prisons and enacting a diverse set of solutions to reverse the prison industrial complex is necessary for preventing the deaths of innocent queer and black bodies. Providing separate cost-effective alternatives that focus on forgiveness and healing, allows for the justice system to make amends to both the sufferer and offender. In analyzing the repetitive violence and historic ties of exploitation, queer theory within education serves as a tool to disrupt and transform the normalization of prisons. The willingness to strengthen organizations that are already in place, such as “INCITE!” and “Critical Resistance,” through grassroots activism can also incite a shift for healing and restoration in marginalized communities. Hence, identifying the structural violence of the prison and providing a transitional point of uplift and atonement facilitates a less exploitative justice system. Through the introduction of queer theory, the education system is able to reverse the discourse surrounding the safety of prisons, enact pedagogies aimed toward black