The PA DOC Monitor

I am writing this letter on behalf of the thousands of men and women who are currently incarcerated within the PA DOC. The advertisement I read said the purpose of your website was to re-evaluate the direction of the PA DOC. I would say it is pretty obvious that it is all about warehousing inmates. If it weren’t then they would be doing something more to release those who have completed the recommended programs and who have remained free of misconduct. Currently, the DOC rarely gives their support for parole.

By Jean L. Dell’ Aquila & Moniem A. El-Ganayni

If one ever has the misfortune of entering a correctional facility, he or she will soon learn that freedom of expression or right to protest is merely an illusion. Yes, one can pick up a pen and pad and write their grievances to the appropriate individuals; yes, one can open his or her mouth and voice their displeasure, but at what cost?

If one seriously examines both the American prison and military systems, he or she should immediately notice similarities, as well as some differences. The two systems share an operational strategy: hierarchical structure and security, both implemented through command and control, oftentimes in the form of discipline and force. Yet, while the American military has remained generally successful for years, American prisons fall into deeper turmoil each year, despite billions of dollars in funding and brand-new, state-of-the art correctional facilities.

Elsner, Alan. Gates of Injustice: The Crisis in America's Prisons. Saddler River: Pearson Education Inc., 2006. In this new edition, updated after the Abu Ghraib scandal, Elsner uses a conversational tone in recounting the aspects of day-to-day life for American inmates: drug and alcohol abuse, rampant disease, rape, murder and racism.