Can social perception of prison be transformed?

Prison is an unknown and distant space for a large part of society, a place that often only appears in public debate when there is alarm, fear or sensational headlines, but the volunteers who enter prisons know that this view is incomplete. As volunteers, we have the challenge of making a change in the social perception of the prison system possible and we want to challenge society as a whole by opening a necessary debate on the conditions of life in prison and the possible alternatives.  Prison is not an alien reality, but a mirror of society .

With this conviction, the Penitentiary Volunteering Working Group (GTVP), under the auspices of the Catalan Federation of Social Volunteering (FCVS), celebrated the 2nd Penitentiary Volunteering Meeting, focused on the “social perception of prison”. The day started from a manifesto shared by the group’s entities as a declaration that invites us to ask ourselves about alternatives beyond punishment. We are very aware of the importance that public opinion has on political and social decisions and, particularly, in complex moments like the present. That is why it is worth stopping for a moment, not letting ourselves be carried away by inertia and deciding whether the path of “more prison” is effective for the problems we have.  

The declaration warns that the dominant discourses intend that this phase of reflection does not occur: it is enough to appeal to fear and public security in such a way that prison – understood as punishment, without us having to decide whether it adequately fulfills its function – is presented as almost the only option. The great difficulty we have as a society is to legislate or express an opinion under the pressure of this populism which – as we see from volunteering – actually distances us from effective solutions. And it is not, obviously, a question of being condescending to crime, but of asking ourselves what happened before to end up committing a crime and what is needed to truly remedy it. As prison volunteers, we see realities every day that do not reach public opinion, people with a desire to improve, but we also see other realities with frustrations, fragilities and life stories marked by a lack of opportunities.

The GTVP statement expresses this very clearly: we often talk about second chances when many people have not even had a first one . That is why it is very important to look at the before and after of prison, not just during it.

And what do we want to happen next? Put aside, lock up and forget? Or do we want the person who committed the crime to take responsibility, repair the damage and return to the community at peace with society? Sentences with longer sentences do not ensure a better outcome, more prison does not mean more security. It must be possible to say.

Likewise, we believe that we must be able to speak courageously about alternative criminal measures , especially in non-violent crimes or for certain economic crimes. We defend a commitment to these measures, to restorative justice for victims and to truly humanize internments, because we are a society that does not renounce responsibility or dignity.

Catalonia has made important steps since it assumed responsibility for managing prison activity, but we believe that a large part of the resources invested could have a greater social impact if they were allocated to restorative, preventive and more humane use. The public cost per inmate is very high, but, in addition,  closure is not a guarantee of rehabilitation and reintegration .

Transforming society's perception of prisons is possible if we disseminate rigorous information and collective awareness . We need to publicize the processes of change, reintegration and constructive and positive experiences that make us feel proud of being able to offer opportunities to those who have never had them. Society has a duty to ask itself what it does with its prisons and with the people who will one day live in freedom again, so that we do not forget that prison is a place to come out.