The rate of incarceration in the United States is higher than that of almost any other nation. California alone incarcerates more people than many countries in the world. According to the Prison Policy Initiative, the U.S. has about two million people behind bars at any given time. About 540,000 of these people are locked up in local jails and another 1 million are in state prisons. Incarceration rates undoubtedly affect communities of color at disproportionate rates, a rural issue since rural communities are home to many Black and Latinx people, especially in the Deep South.
An interesting phenomenon has been the rise of jails in rural communities. Economic restructuring of rural communities is an important piece in understanding and explaining the rural jail and prison boom. First, as some rural communities suffer from declines in industries that previously dominated such as farming, mining, steel, and coal, coupled with factory closures and a shift to the service sector employment, there have been many social and economic consequences for these areas further discussed here and here. Prisons as an economic development strategy for rural communities have been a way to bring jobs to towns. As the incarcerated population in America increased there was a subsequent demand for prison expansion and state prison and jail populations burgeoned. Prisons then became a convenient way to address the economic problems facing rural communities and a way for politicians to create a facade of aid and increased employment opportunities.
According to the Vera Institute of Justice's Report of People in Jail and Prison in 2020 (here), the U.S. saw an unprecedented drop in total incarceration rates between 2019 and 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The decline however was "neither substantial nor sustained enough to be an adequate response to COVID-19." Furthermore, the largest and most sustained jail population declines were in rural areas. These declines were a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and increased awareness of the heightened public health issues prisons and jails face because of close quarters. However, even with these declines rural counties "still incarcerate people at doubt the rate of urban and suburban areas. Three out of 5 people incarcerated in local jails are in smaller cities and rural communities." Since 2013, jail populations have grown by 27% in rural counties. This rural jail boom has been attributed to many factors including the rural lawyer shortage, prosecutor hiring processes, and the rural justice system overall, some of which are addressed in previous blogs here.
The prison and jail system operate as an arm of the state apparatus, often inflicting violence on rural communities in the form of separating families and continuing the cycle of poverty. Policing of rural communities continues to drive incarceration rates. This policing is skewed not only in urban areas but in rural ones too to affect low-income communities of color. A report by Vera shows that people in some rural areas are punished for not meeting system rules rather than violent or dangerous criminal charges. Prisons, and the nature of the criminal "justice" system in rural communities then become another mechanism to punish rurality.
As Professor Beety discusses in Prosecuting Opioid Use, Punishing Rurality, unique prosecutorial charges such as drug-induced homicide, a popular charge amidst the ongoing opioid crisis "operate in largely insular and sparsely populated rural areas." Beety also makes clear that poverty impacts people of color in rural communities and these people of color are then over-represented in the criminal legal system.
The prison system is often wielded as a way to address problems that rural communities face, rather than addressing and understanding the systemic causes that lead to these problems. Overall, the notion that jails help rural communities should be challenged and other forms of justice should be sought to give these communities the healing they deserve.
6 comments:
The economically motivated expansion of prison and jail populations at the expense of people of color, who, as you mentioned, are policed and incarcerated at disproportionate rates, is deeply upsetting. It seems to me that no one who stands to benefit financially from increased incarceration should have any say in increasing incarceration. Despite this, perverse financial incentives of this nature are inherent within the U.S. prison industrial complex. I agree we should challenge the notion that expanding prisons and jails will help rural communities (or any community for that matter). Moreover, as part of this conversation we need to call out racialized mass incarceration for what it is – a continuation of America’s legacy of white supremacist racial oppression.
I think your post is a great topic and there should be change done. I wonder if the high incarceration rate is largely due to the lack of resources for those struggling with mental health and drug addiction issues. For many rural law enforcement officers, this may seem like the best way to keep the rest of the community safe? Although I find myself not having much faith in law enforcement, it may be helpful for further research on this topic to play devil's advocate and look through the lens of locking up the few for the benefit of the many. I, personally, don't take this viewpoint and definitely do not think prison is the answer to this problem. However, in order to make a change, I think creating some practical alternatives for those in prison for mental health and drug charges needs to be further addressed. Particularly keeping in mind the lack of access (no public transit, no insurance, etc.) and economic resources (both personal and on the level of the municipality) available in these communities.
I read an article recently about the rural community of Susanville, California, which has a prison nearby that is shutting down. The local residents were actually suing the state to keep the prison open, because they said the town would be economically devastated if the prison were to close. It really just drives home the cruelty of our prison-industrial complex, as jails are such big economic profit generators that they can keep entire towns alive. Incarcerated people are seen as nothing but revenue to the prisons that have every financial incentive to keep them locked up for as long as possible. Going off what Rooney said above, this is also an example of why expanding prisons and jails is not a good thing for rural communities, or any community at all. The plight that Susanville is facing is analogous to any rural town that has experienced domination by a single economic force. Once that force is gone, the town attached to it may not survive at all. The fact that the Susanville prison has essentially made an entire town of people choose between the continued commodification of human beings and the survival of their town is unreal, and something I can't really find the proper words to describe. I would be interested in hearing other people's thoughts on this.
Thank you for your post! I agree--it is silly to think that more policing and a subsequent higher rate of incarceration are going to help rural, impoverished communities. They almost never do! I think that investing in social/community services will do more to improve the lives of rural Americans. This country's obsession with punishment without rehabilitation is completely backwards.
Excellent post! I completely agree with this post, especially when you pointed out that policing in rural communities exemplifies the ongoing problem of racist systemic oppression. I agree with your point of view of needing another form of justice that does not disproportionately affect people of color, in which those affected are not being used for profit, and their rehabilitation is actually at the forefront of solutions for justice.
The Vera report explaining how rural people are mostly incarcerated for minor infractures, or for failing to show up to court is also devastating and shows that a lot of work needs to be done in the field of criminal justice.
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