Prison

Prison

Tuesday 7 October 2014

The Prison Blog Phenomenon

Over the past three months since this blog was launched I’ve been amazed at just how much general interest there is in the whole issue of prisons. As regular visitors will be aware, I decided to start posting about my own experience of prison and different aspects of life inside following my earlier contributions to The Guardian online comments section.

One of my main objectives in blogging is to provide a personal insight into as many different facets of prison life as I can, based mainly on my own experiences and reflections, but also referencing information I’ve received from fellow cons and ex-prisoners. I’m very keen to be able to offer practical information and advice to anyone who might face imprisonment, as well as to their families and friends. 

Ben's Lifer on the Loose blog
When I first started blogging, I was only vaguely aware of a couple of fellow prison bloggers: ‘Ben’ (John) Gunn and Adam Mac. Ben started writing for his award-winning prison blog Lifer on the Loose while he was still inside serving a life sentence; Adam writes his Blogging Behind Bars while currently a prisoner at HMP Wakefield. 

I always think that it’s a much braver thing to blog by mail, often writing the text by hand, when you’re still inside the slammer because of the potential ‘blowback’ from governors and screws, many of whom do follow prison blogs online. A misjudged – or even misunderstood – comment when you are still a con can leave you at risk of very serious consequences, perhaps even a nicking (disciplinary charge) or a security review.

Adam recently posted an interesting piece on an interaction he had with one wing screw who had read his blog. You can find the post here. Writing under such conditions involves treading a very thin line at times and there can be negative consequences if those in authority don’t like what they read. When you are still a serving con you can be particularly defenceless behind those high walls, so I salute Adam’s fortitude in continuing to post. 

Jack Hill: armed blogger
My friend, and fellow ex-con, Jack Hill has also recently launched his own blog (link here), after having become well-known for his series of video blogs (vlogs) on YouTube. His first blog post is the fascinating and heart-breaking background story of how an intelligent university student ended up committing an armed robbery and then serving a prison sentence. 

What I particularly appreciate with Jack’s commentary is that he never seeks to make excuses for his criminal offence, but does his best to explain how and why he did what he did and the consequences of his actions. That he managed to complete his degree (despite being inside), has now found professional work in the media industry, has successfully finished his period on licence and has rebuilt his life after having been a prisoner is a positive story that should appeal to anyone with an interest in the rehabilitation and resettlement of ex-cons. I feel that his blog provides a refreshing antidote to the general crisis, mismanagement and chaos that seems to be engulfing our criminal justice system.

Even better, Jack is willing to share his thoughts on his prison experiences with a wider audience. As regular viewers of his vlogs will be aware, he confronts some of the more ‘gritty’ issues of life inside the nick without flinching. At times, his honesty can be painful, which is why it’s good that he manages to balance it with infectious good humour and a bit of musical talent.

Prison blogs are not limited to the UK. During the last few months I’ve become aware of a number of fellow prisoner bloggers from the USA and Canada. Occasionally, I’ll flag up one of their posts that I have found particularly interesting. There are some odd parallels between the prison systems over there in North America and our own, as well as many differences.

What goes on within these walls?
So why is there such interest in what we write and post online? Prison, by its very nature, is a closed world and that encourages a climate of misinformation – often propagated by the tabloid media – as well as popular distrust and fear of crime and criminals. It’s perhaps not entirely surprising that people who are faced with the likelihood of imprisonment for the first time panic at the prospect and can even consider committing suicide as a means of avoiding being banged-up. 

I’ve been pleased to read recent comments made on Prison UK: an Insider’s View by those who are in this position that indicate how helpful they are finding the opportunity to find out more about the whole prison experience from ex-cons, as well as to ask specific questions. Since its launch at the beginning of July, this blog has attracted around 300 comments or questions, all of which I’ve tried to answer as best I can. 

I’m always chuffed when other former prisoners (or their families) contribute their own responses to the discussions. Anything positive that people can take from these posts or online comments will mean that this blog is having a worthwhile impact by helping those readers who are at risk of being given custodial sentences find some answers as they prepare for the possibility of doing time in the slammer.

Preparing for prison: information
In addition to the blogs already mentioned above, there are also several excellent websites that publish contributions from serving or ex-cons. A good example is Comment with Convictions. These sites allow for a wider dissemination of peoples’ thoughts, reflections and experiences of the criminal justice system, positive and negative.

Having a loved one or close friend in prison also seems to be a strong motivation for searching out reliable information online. There are various websites and blogs that focus on either general prison issues as they affect families (Prisoners Families Voices, for example) or on specific campaigns against wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice. I think that these demonstrate just how severe the impact of imprisonment can be on the families of prisoners, as well as their friends and supporters.

Other interesting blogs cover different aspects of the criminal justice system, whether in the magistrate’s courts (for example The Magistrate’s Blog and The Justice of the Peace) or Probation (eg On Probation Blog). There are also a few blogs by serving police officers, ex-prison officers and I’ve so far found one written by a prison chaplain - Get Out of Jail Free. Although there is an online forum for prison officers (PrisonOfficer.org.uk), as well as a few members of the uniformed prison staff who use Twitter, it would be good to have a regular blog written by a serving screw, obviously under a pseudonym in order to avoid any problems with management or the National Offender Management Service (NOMS).

New monthly newspaper for prisoners
Where prison-themed blogs and websites have least impact – ironically – is actually in our jails where virtually no prisoners ever have access to the internet or online media. I’ve been delighted to have been asked to contribute a recent feature article for Jail Mail, the brand new monthly newspaper aimed at prisoners and those working in the criminal justice system. Maybe this is an example of how a crossover between online media and print journalism can make relevant sections of the ‘net more accessible to serving inmates.

I certainly intend, my real work permitting, to continue blogging, at least while there is still popular interest (at present the blog is getting 1,000 hits or more each day). I plan to include a mixture of personal experiences, with some commentary on current political developments and relevant news about our prison system. God knows, we sometimes need to challenge the misrepresentations, lies and smears about prisons and prisoners that we read almost every day in the likes of the Daily Mail and The Sun

17 comments:

  1. I spotted a link to AdamMac's blog on twitter at the start of the year. I enjoy reading his posts and I reckon he's a good chap. I enjoy reading Ben & Jack's blogs too.

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    1. Thanks for your comments. As I mention above in the post, I have a great deal of admiration for Adam Mac's willingness to put his head above the parapet, even if there could be negative consequences. In troubled times like these when bloggers and tweeters can get banged-up, people tend to keep their heads down, so having a regular blog from a serving con is a rare and welcome thing.

      I'd like to see more blogs from current prisoners - and some from serving screws - but I think people are genuinely worried about the potential fallout, so I guess it will be ex-cons like Ben, Jack and myself (as well as former prisoners who write in the mainstream media such as Eric Allison and Erwin James) who will have to try to fill the information gap!

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  2. I forgot to mention I enjoy reading your blog too

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    1. Thanks for the kind comment! I'm glad you find it an interesting read.

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  3. I hope you continue to blog for a long time, Alex, your 'real' life and work permitting - my dinner table has become a much more interesting place since I have been reading and absorbing your posts! Plus, my eyes and ears have been opened to the many myths and misconceptions that exist around the topic of prison and prisoners. Thank you!

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    1. Thanks for your kind comments! Prison UK aims to please (and inform), as well as entertain.

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  4. Alex, I whole heartedly agree with the comments made by Sirikit. I have been reading your earlier blog posts for sometime, although I only recently made a comment online. Thanks. Sally

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    1. Thanks for your comments, Sally. I'm glad to hear that you are finding the blog of interest.

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  5. Keep up the good work Alex, blog is really informative

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    1. Thanks for your comments, Lissa. It's good to know that you find the blog helpful and informative.

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  6. Can you please write something about disruptive prisoners and how the authorities deal with them. Also, how do other prisoners deal with the problem? If you complain about the behavior of a fellow prisoner, does that make you a grass?

    Peter.

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    1. Thanks for your questions, Peter. I suppose it depends just how disruptive an individual prisoner is. If he poses a threat to others or to himself, then he is liable to be 'bent up' (or 'twisted up) which is prison slang for being put into restraint, initially using physical techniques that are designed to apply pain for non-compliance (painful wrist holds etc).

      In some cases the con may find himself down the Block (segregation unit) or on cellular confinement (locked up in a cell on the wing, but not permitted to associate with others) for a period of time. In more minor cases the wing screws might just bang him up for the rest of the day until he has calmed down.

      If the disruptive behaviour includes bullying of other cons, then he could be placed on 'bully watch' under the Violence Reduction strategy. This means that he will be monitored and further incidents can lead to being demoted to 'Bully Basic' - which is a loss of all privileges, including the rented TV, gym access etc.

      Fellow prisoners can play a significant role in calming people down. I've personally dissuaded lads who were in a temper from attacking wing screws, mainly because that would just make their situations much worse and in the case of lifers or indeterminate sentenced prisoners (IPPs), it could add years to their time inside.

      Generally, cons often do a lot more than is sometimes recognised to keep order on the wings and landings. Often a quiet word in the ear from an influential or respected inmate can do the trick, especially with younger cons who need a bit of mentoring from more mature blokes.

      The issue of what is and isn't 'grassing' gets discussed quite a bit between cons. Some prisoners take the view that any conversation with screws about anything other than basic requests can constitute grassing. Others believe that if a very vulnerable prisoner is being victimised or bullied and it can't be dealt with between the inmates themselves, then getting staff involved can be justified. There is sometimes a very fine line and no hard and fast rules. In general, I think it's true that cons prefer to sort things out 'internally' rather than involve the screws.

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    2. You said there that a prisoner can get loss of privileges for being disruptive including loss of TV. What happens if you are sharing a cell and this happens. Does your cellmate lose out on the TV as well?

      How long would somebody be kept down the block for? Is it just for a few days or are there any limits on that?

      Also you said about prisoners being restrained. Just wondering if handcuffs or anything like that are used at all within a prison or are they only used to bring you in and take you out of prison?

      Paul

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    3. Thanks for your questions, Paul. If a prisoner is put on losses or Basic regime, then the usual practice is to either move them into a cell with another con in the same position - so no TV for either of them - or to make use of a single cell. This can be for a matter of days or for weeks, or even months, depending on whether they conform and manage to get removed from Basic.

      Prisoners can be sent down the Block for varying periods of time. For some, it could be 7 days, for others - particularly cons with serious discipline problems - it could stretch into many weeks or months. Occasionally it can even be years.

      Uniformed wing officers do have handcuffs on their belts. They only tend to be used in extreme situations, as physical restraint techniques are designed to subdue violent cons and then they would either be walked (or sometimes carried) off the wing and down the Block. However, in open conditions (Cat-D) I've seen quite a few cons who have been busted back to closed prisons being led off the units or houseblocks in cuffs.

      Sometimes the screws used to deliberately parade the offender by taking them down to Reception by the longest route, so everyone else could see what was going on. We used to call it the 'long walk of shame' and really unpopular pad thieves or bullies can face being cat-called and jeered the whole way by fellow cons!

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  7. I guess some Prison blogs are popular at the moment cos they are well written.

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    1. Thanks for your comment. Not sure if that includes Prison UK! I'm still amazed how interested people seem to be.

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    2. Yes Alex, PrisonUK is popular cos it's a well written blog!

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