LOCK and LOAD

Human interaction is a natural and essential component to the human existence. Although an individual may not engage in dialouge with others, just the known presence of other human beings is necessary to maintain sanity. When alone for an extended period of time, the mind is forced to improvise to keep its sanity. While LOCKed in isolation, the individual LOADs his/her conscious with fantacy to escape the harsh reality of loneliness. Some may engage in activities such as decorating the walls, reconstructing memorable events from beginning to end or even go as far as talking to a volleyball with a bloody handprint (Tom Hanks in Cast Away).

The seperate system of silent solitary confinement may have been meant to serve as a period of time when the inmate can engage in self-penitence, a form of rehabilitation. Unfortunately, the time spent LOCKed up in segregation has known to generate LOADs of psychological ramifications. Does solitary confinement rehabilitate sociopaths or does it produce them? Many states remain LOCKed in their way of so-called rehabilitation (punishment) as inmates are continuously LOCKed up and LOADed into cells of solitary confinement. I always believed in the notion that individuals are sent to prison "as" punishment, not "to be punished". The eighth Amendment which protects against cruel and unusual punishment must have been confined to the physical abuse such as flogging, branding, etc.. What about the cruel psychological punishment of isolation for extended periods of time?

Being that our individual tolerance for psychological pain will undoubtedly vary, would it be in any way prolific discussing the length of time spent in isolation before it is considered psychological abuse? Instead, it would be much more productive discussing alternatives to inmates being LOCKed up and LOADed into cells of silent solitary confinement. In HellHole by Atul Gawande, it states that the British have been successful using the strategy of "empowerment". The dangerous prisoners were given more control, increased opportunities to work, pursue an education and build social skills. This tactic has produced positive results in England.

I also often wonder if we are living and dwelling in a societal prison in which we are LOCKed in and confined to our social location. A societal prison in which many of us are denied access to the LOADs of recources that are not being distributed equally. What psychological effect can this kind of confinement and denial produce?

Empowering > Demanding

Yesterday’s class was such a great experience for me, and I’m sure my peers can agree. The Mentor’s Coffee was not only a way to learn about your mentor/s outlook on your performance at the internship but also a great way to collectively plan for the spring semester. This way we can continue to make differences in the populations we are serving. The idea of swapping interns for a day, so that we can all have an idea of the work Vera Fellows are doing at their agencies is just absolutely fantastic! It was really lifting to learn that some of us, as interns, are inspiring our mentors, and that’s really worth mentioning and applauding. I am extremely proud of all the fellows and the work we are doing to ensure positive and lasting change in our populations.

One common theme I noticed in our agencies is the idea of empowerment. Whether we are empowering victims of domestic violence to welcome positive change at DVLEAP (Domestic Violence Legal Education and Advocacy Program) or the youth offenders at The Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment Services (CASES). However, we often have cases where clients find themselves in the same situations as before. Now, my question is, does this happen because change is a requirement for services? Are clients demanded to change rather than empowered to change?

At my agency, CASES, counselors and General Education Development (GED) instructors work diligently for six months to help youth offenders build their reading, writing, and math skills. In addition, clients participate in job trainings, which help them develop communications skills. After that step, the Career Exploration Coordinator finds an internship that fits the clients needs. All this is fantastic and formal, but it lacks empowerment. Clients still have a very low self-esteem because of the lack of empowerment.

Whether you’re a child, adolescent, or an adult; we sometimes need to be reminded that we are worthy and capable of change for that ultimate push. I think people forget that emotional wellness has a great impact on your overall performance in all areas of life. When I interact with the clients, they often complain that they don’t want to come to the program; they do it because it is a requirement. It is an alternative to confinement. I always believed that a person must be internally free before any change can be made. Given that, come spring semester, I’d like to meet with my mentors to see how we can develop a program where the clients can be empowered with tools for positive decision-making, which will allow them to experience internal freedom and willingly change.

The "Culture" of Poverty

Professor Waterson’s class was an eye opening experience on the discussion of the culture of poverty. The readings certainly contributed to our discussion on the theories of justice. Her insights on issues regarding justice from an anthropologist’s perspective are going to be greatly missed throughout the seminar. Professor Waterson challenges us to criticize and question the media, scholarly research, academics, and demagogues.

Do not allow Oscar Lewis to lure you into his ideologies of the culture of poverty through his rhetoric that seems to say everything you want to hear, yet at the essence of his conclusion he attempts to dismiss the structural violence of poverty. Lewis describes a “phenomenon” that has occurred in the Western society by distinguishing between poverty and the culture of poverty. He analyzes the poor by finding characteristics of those who live in low-income areas. The characteristics that he classifies as traits of the culture of poverty might be realistic and be true based on observation, but the establishment of traits defers from the actual problem of how poverty is predicated off of the issues of class, ethnic, gender, and colonial inequalities. This framework silences historic values thus reinforcing the racialized hierarchy rooted in the history of the United States, which was used to justify genocide, slavery, colonization, and immigration control.

I agree with Oscar Lewis on how there is a pattern within low-income societies that seem to pass on from generation to generation, however, I disagree with his “cure” to the culture of poverty which is offering poor people psychiatric treatment. This suggests that they make themselves poor by holding particular beliefs or lacking particular beliefs, which in the end blames the victims of poverty for their status. Lewis' conclusion is rooted in the belief that he can give the poor the solution to their problems, forgetting that he (the privileged) is the problem through his participation in the system that upholds structural violence.

The cycle of poverty is reproduced through interactions between institutions and children from disadvantaged communities. The criminal justice system is part of the system of structural violence that seeks to criminalize the behavior of poor and racialized children. Our society limits the growth of children in poverty and offers spurious assistance. The kind of support offered in the status quo is one that makes them dependent on the system. What kind of changes can be made to solve the issue of poverty in a first-world country? What kind of policy changes can we suggest?

An issue that was brought up during our discussion was how no one talks about the system, the rich, or the privileged. No one talks about the men/women who buy child sex-workers. How do we shift the burden of responsibility from the victim to the perpetrator?

How do we overcome poverty? Can a community overcome their status of being poor? If so how? Do those who succeed have a duty to their community?

Facts About New York City's Children
(http://www.cccnewyork.org/genfacts.html)
- Every day many babies are born at risk:
· 180 babies are born into poor families.*
· 23 babies are born to teen parents.*
· 19 babies are born to mother with inadequate prenatal care.*
· 28 babies are born at low birthweight.*
- Every day over 479,039 children live in poverty.**
- Every day 14,709 children are homeless.****
- Every day 41% of all elementary and middle school students read below State & City standards.**

At what cost?

Once again we had a great class. We were lucky enough to have fellow Vera alum, Danielle D’Antuono, several donors and even the President of our school, Jeremy Travis, inattendance. After class some of us even made an unofficial trip to the new building. But back toour regular stationed program….
Ms. D’Antuono explained the cost of doing business in the nonprofit organization, mainly when it comes to keeping employees and losing employees. As the son of an accountant who works for a nonprofit organization (NPO), I took heed and had much understanding of what she was saying. NPOs are special types of organization that give services to specific populations. To properly service the needs of these populations nonprofits rely on donors. Donors are a necessary for NPOs But what happens when there are no donors? To make matters worse, what happens to an NPO when there is a recession? When people are out of work, losing homes, or when the future of their money seems bleak, they tend to donate less or nothing at all. Or when donors do give money, as Danielle D’Antuono pointed out, the restrictions could be endless. My father claimed that his NPO received a large donation, but he still did not get paid that week because a large sum of the money donated was restricted to purchasing computers. With respect to people’s bills, why should they stay at a job where their economic stability is questionable? This may create low retention rates and an unmotivated workplace, which in the long run will definitely hurt the participants that the NPO is meant for. To make ends meet and avoid the endless amount of restrictions put in donations at times, NPOs are forced to get creative. Whether an NPO relies on invisible costs, “lying” to donors, or even asking for donations from groups that are not necessarily compatible with the NPOs mission statement, that NPO must find money to service their participants.
As French philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville argued, NPOs are necessary for the stability of a democracy. To keep NPOs going, is it right to rely on certain tactics which may seem unethical? Just as Straker was battling with her morality with Stanley, this recent recession has created a different playing field, that may affect the morality of many nonprofit executives. Although morality is very important, should NPOs deny certain donors and different techniques which will keep them alive and the population they are servicing afloat?

Who practices their morals nowadays?

Reflecting on yesterday's lesson, I was speaking to Ms. White from DVLEAP (Domestic Violence Legal Education and Advocacy Program) about how morality is also something that's a struggle at our agency. When it comes to legal issues the program tries to help as many clients as it can to try and make the justice system work in their favor. Sometimes from the trauma and stress, these clients might make certain decisions that lead to the agency to discharge them from the shelter. In the mission statement I read at the beginning of the semester, I read about how the agency helped to change these women's lives. As we spoke we started to speak about a case where a client had to be discharged with her 3 little kids. Where are our morals and values in this case? How can I stand there and allow an agency like this one do that to this client? Just as Straker was battling with her morality when she had Sandy as her client, likewise these clients create a struggle wih our own morals within our work. These decisions are made because as Ms. White explained: it's for the safety of the rest of the women at the shelter. In order to keep the shelter going, there needs to be a security of confidentiality. When it comes to the courts, many of the abusers have already done their homework and filed for and order of protection or custody against the victim. What ends up happening is that the judge grants the abuser his petition and the victim is left without a guarantee that she will be safe and better off in the longrun. The first thing that condemns me is Thomas Giovanni's quote, "I'm just doing my job." What morals do you struggle against in your agency or even in society?

Our Great System

First and for most, thank you to Thomas Giovanni for giving us your time and pearls of wisdom: Why is it that everything I heard yesterday wasn’t a surprise but still hit me as if I had just heard it for the first time? As I heard the statistics and looked around me, a weight weighed heavily on my spirit. As I sat in that courtroom and saw one by one as each individual had an average 6 minute hearing, I couldn’t help but scuff and chuckle at how ridiculous this
reality was. Is this really OUR system? Irrevocably and undeniably to my disdain, it very much is! Mario Rocha was tried and convicted on 1st degree murder and spent 10 years of his life in prison before his conviction was reversed. Fernando Bermudez was tried and convicted of 1st degree murder and spent 18 years in prison before his conviction was reversed. Jeffrey Deskovic was tried and convicted of sexual assault and murder and spent 15 years in prison before his conviction was reversed. All three men have been exonerated since and have had their records wiped as if it never existed. BUT IT DID. These men were given counsel and were tried by their peers by the very same system that we say prevails of which I guess in some ways it did for these men. On the other hand, those ten minutes that was allotted Mario Rocha, Fernando Bermudez, and Jeffrey Deskovic were obviously not enough to help their counsel better prepare an argument to the judge for at least bail. None were released from the point of being arrested. Did these men really get their ‘Due Process? While in D.C., Christal Wood, a single mom and law school graduate is now suing the state of Washington for involuntary servitude. I never really realized it until Thomas put it into words but the system does run on indigenous communities of which if there would be none if they didn’t exist. I will finish with a wise man’s quote regarding what is supposed to be our social justice system: “I thought we were supposed to keep people in cages because we are afraid of them not mad at them.”