terry a kupers

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intro’d to Terry while reading Will Hall‘s outside mental health

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Terry A. Kupers (terry)(http://www.wi.edu/psyd-faculty-terry-kupers)(https://www.amazon.com/Solitary-Inside-Supermax-Isolation-Abolish/dp/0520292235) solitary

wh: what’s driving prison growth

the war on drugs is central..

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when walk into our prisons.. it’s shocking.. 50% are african american.. another 20-25% are latino and native american.. if go to solitary confinement units.. mostly people of color.. desirable programs that provide training and vocational skills have disproportionately white prisoners..

resources going into mental health system declined steadily since 70s.. while prison expanded.. today there are more people w mental illness inside prisons than confined anywhere else: state hospitals are small in comparison.. t.. there is disproportionate number of people w emotional problems among the homeless.., who tend to get locked up.. the imprisonment binge has exacerbated and created serious mental illness..t

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in ca.. basketball courts filled w bunk beds three high so could get 150-200 men in what used to be gym.. result is a lot of violence/rape.. by 80s prisons were out of control.. a lot of what were called riots were often actually protests by prisoners demanding more humane conditions..

authorities could have addressed the real problem in 80s but instead of reducing crowding and supporting rehab.. they resorted to solitary.. the 80s began these supermax prisons and now over 40 states and fed govt have built them.. no programming/rehab/ed opps.. just solitary.. nearly 24 hrs a day..t

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goffman: when take away self-expression.. become more and more extreme in efforts at expression.. in supermax prisons today.. people are screaming, cutting, writing on walls w feces. and people don’t hear about it because it so difficult to visit prisoners..

disproportionate number of prisoners in supermax who were protesting conditions.. political prisoners.. religious leaders.. who have very high level of consciousness about what’s going on..t

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research show rehab works. but politicians and people who make money building prisons and supplying food/guns to prisons have self interest in keeping prison populations large. they are the ones who claim that rehab doesn’t work

crime is the new face of racism.. 75% of people entering prison for a felony did not commit a violent crime..t.. yet our society uses fear of violence to justify extremely harsh sentences… if you brutalize people in prison, they will fail when they get out: they won’t have skills for anything other than prison. his is esp true for people w mental illness..

wh: one of most shocking situations that affects mental health is sexual abuse..t

sexual abuse in prison is endemic..t

a huge proportion of prisoners had been massively traumatized as children prior to incarceration.. t..when they experience more sexual abuse.. ie: strip searches.. the repeated trauma makes them suffer more..

in men’s prisons there are gangs/ who look out for each other. a perpetrator doesn’t want to rape someone w tough friends, so they pick on loners.. and people w mental illness are more prone to be loners..

wh: what prison reform strategy would work

we have to work at all levels. 1\ our public schools are failing which sends people into drugs, crime, becoming homeless and getting arrested.. 2\ not providing adequate access to public mental health care 3\ stop sending so many to prison in first place.. 4\ people w substance abuse problems don’t belong in prison..

if equity is everyone getting a go every day.. redefining public education becomes revolution of everyday life.. aka: global equity

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in england, grendon prison provides therapeutic communities where prisoners meet to make decisions for themselves rather than being told what to do every minute of every day..

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2013 talk on solitary – 4 parts

http://solitarywatch.com/2013/04/24/new-video-dr-terry-kupers-on-solitary-confinement-and-mental-health/

haven’t listened to all yet.. so sad/disgusting

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book – 2017 – solitary

https://www.amazon.com/Solitary-Inside-Supermax-Isolation-Abolish/dp/0520292235

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find/follow Terry:

http://www.wi.edu/psyd-faculty-terry-kupers

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incarceration