Developing the Conceptual Foundations for the Science of Penitentiary (Prison) Law — Prison Studies — as an Independent Branch of Russian Criminal Law (Second Half of the XIX — Beginning of the XX Century)

The authors analyze the historical experience of the emergence and development of the science of penitentiary (prison) law — prison studies — as an independent branch of Russian criminal law that was formed in the second half of the 19th — beginning of the 20th centuries. They pay special attention to the institutionalization of the punishment of incarceration whose theoretical foundation was laid by outstanding representatives of Russian pre-revolutionary prison studies. In this historical period, famous legal scholars, practitioners, public figures, political and fiction writers studied problems of the organization and functioning of the Russian prison service, they offered suggestions on its optimization, on improving the effectiveness of its functioning regarding the implementation of the basic principles of punishment for persons who committed illegal actions. It is noted that in the history of Russian criminal law, the institute of punishment was studied by many representatives of legal science and practice who were not only outstanding scholars, but also highly effective organizers of prison work. However even today, in the process of establishing a civilized, humane, international law- and norm-based penitentiary system in Russia, there is an acute lack of complex research which would offer a comprehensive description and characteristic of the contemporary science of penitentiary law that became unofficially known as prison studies in the second half of the 19th — first half of the 20th centuries. Taking into account the historical past of our country, it is evident that a complex approach to researching the fundamental principles of the punishment of incarceration contributes to the further development of Russia legal science, to the objective assessment of the role and place of penitentiary institutions in the system of especially authorized state bodies that possess an exclusive right to counteracting crime. The studied empirical materials allowed the authors to conclude that it is necessary to analyze and widely use this rich historical legacy, which would help contemporary legal research and practice gain new knowledge in a dynamic and consistent way.

FeminisT Phenomenology

This chapter charts the field-defining contributions to feminist phenomenology made by Simone de Beauvoir, Iris Marion Young, Sandra Lee Bartky, and Judith Butler and discusses how their work has been influenced by, critically intervened in, and transformed traditional phenomenology. Drawing on their work as well as the recent work of contemporary feminist phenomenologists such as Lisa Guenther, Sara Ahmed, Linda Martín Alcoff, Mariana Ortega, and Gayle Salamon, the chapter emphasizes that feminist phenomenology is a critical phenomenology. Not only does it directly engage specific social and political issues, eschewing the alleged universality and value-neutrality of traditional phenomenological accounts, but it is also in dialogue with, and immeasurably enriched by the multi- and interdisciplinary fields of critical race theory, prison studies, trans studies, queer theory, and disability studies.

Negotiating detention: The radical pragmatism of prison-based resistance in protracted conflicts

Critical prison studies have demonstrated how states use imprisonment and detention not only to punish individuals, but also to quell dissent and disrupt opposition movements. In protracted conflicts, however, the use of mass incarceration and unlawful detention often backfires on states as politically motivated prisoners exert their relevance by making imprisonment itself a central issue in the wider conflicts. Rather than retreating to the margins, prisoners have taken back prison spaces as loci of resistance, forcing both state authorities and their own external parties to engage with them seriously as political actors. This subversion of the prison space is not automatic, however; as this article demonstrates, prisoners have exerted the most influence on both authorities and their own factions when they have combined pragmatism and radicalism through multilevel strategies such as establishing praxes for self-education and organizing; using everyday non-compliance to challenge prison administrators; and occasionally, engaging in hunger strikes that exert boomerang pressure from external factions and solidarity networks on state authorities. Drawing from the case studies of Israel–Palestine, Northern Ireland and South Africa, this research shows how these radically pragmatic tactics create a ‘trialectic’ interaction between prisoners, state authorities and external networks, forcing direct and indirect negotiations regarding prisoners’ rights, and, at times, influencing broader conflict dynamics.

Meditation in Prison

In recent years interest in the use of meditation programs in prison has grown considerably, yet empirical research evidence for their effectiveness has been slower to accumulate. This chapter explores the application of meditation programs that take place within prison walls and evaluates their effectiveness in three key areas: (i) mental health and psychological wellbeing; (ii) substance misuse; (iii) and reoffending behavior. Evidence from prison studies, most of them conducted in the USA, is reviewed with a focus on their effectiveness. The philosophical and historical context of meditation is taken into account, and key concepts and definitions are critiqued. The chapter explores the meditation practices that are most often found in prison, such as Transcendental Meditation, mindfulness, and Vipassana meditation. It examines meditation’s role as an adjunct therapy in the treatment of substance misuse disorders and more general applications that aim to enhance well-being. The limitations of current studies together with directions for future research are also discussed.

COMBATENDO O ENCARCERAMENTO EM MASSA,LUTANDO PELA VIDA

<div class="trans-abstract"><p>Neste artigo, busca-se analisar o modo como o arbítrio e a violência policial, sobretudo o encarceramento e as práticas de extermínio, terminam por fomentar a emergência de um multifacetado campo político, que mobiliza coletivos, movimentos e ativistas variados. O objetivo central consiste na construção de um plano analítico que permita incorporar essas movimentações políticas no campo dos estudos prisionais, demonstrando como o encarceramento, juntamente com outros dispositivos punitivos, se constitui como ponto de articulação e transformação desses movimentos. Tomando como referência empírica experiências de articulação política em São Paulo, destaca-se a centralidade que a prisão adquire na pauta dessas articulações e o protagonismo que nelas adquirem as vítimas da violência estatal. Além de pesquisa documental, as análises baseiam-se no engajamento dos autores, implicados nessas movimentações. No centro dessas muitas articulações, nos defrontamos com a defesa da vida – a vida como valor e como campo de disputa.</p><p><strong>Palavras-Chave: </strong>Prisão; Encarceramento em massa; Extermínio; Ativismo; Política</p></div><div class="trans-abstract"><p class="sec"><strong>FIGHTING MASS INCARCERATION, FIGHTING FOR LIFE</strong></p><p class="sec">ABSTRACT</p><p>In this article, we examine how incarceration and practices of extermination foster the emergence of a multifaceted political field that mobilizes collectives, social movements and activists. Our central objective consists in the construction of an analytical plan to incorporate these political movements in the field of prison studies, demonstrating how incarceration, together with other punitive devices, constitutes a point of articulation and transformation of these same movements. We take as empirical reference experiences of political articulation in São Paulo, highlighting the centrality that prison acquires in the agenda of these articulations and the protagonism that the victims of state violence acquire in them. In addition to documentary research, the analyzes are based on the authors’ engagement in these movements. At the heart of these many articulations, we are faced with the defense of life – life as value and as a field of conflict.</p><p><strong>Key words: </strong>Prison; Mass imprisonment; Extermination; State; Activism; Politics</p></div><div class="trans-abstract"><p class="sec"><strong>LUTTER CONTRE L’INCARCÉRATION DE MASSE, LUTTE POUR LA VIE</strong></p><p class="sec">ABSTRACT</p><p>Dans cet article, nous analysons comment la violence policière, notamment les pratiques d’incarcération et d’extermination, favorise l’émergence d’un champ politique vaste et diversifié qui mobilise divers groupes, mouvements sociaux et activistes. Notre objectif central est la construction d’un plan analytique visant à incorporer ces mouvements politiques dans le domaine des études pénitentiaires, démontrant ainsi que l’emprisonnement, associé à d’autres dispositifs punitifs, constitue un point d’articulation et de transformation de ces mouvements. En prenant comme référence empirique les expériences d’articulation politique à São Paulo, nous soulignons la centralité que la prison acquiert, ainsi que le protagonisme des victimes de la violence de l’État. Les analyses sont basées sur des recherches documentaires et sur l’engagement des auteurs dans ces mouvements. Au cœur de ces nombreuses articulations, nous sommes confrontés à la défense de la vie – la vie en tant que valeur et champ de conflit.</p><p><strong>Key words: </strong>prison; Extermination; Incarcération en masse; État; Activisme; Politique</p></div>

Book Review: "The Puzzle of Prison Order: Why Life Behind Bars Varies Around the World"

In this insightful book, David Skarbek builds on his earlier work which shows that official governance institutions are inadequate, prisoners will form their own institutions to secure property rights, facilitate market exchange, adjudicate disputes, and mitigate violence. Skarbek’s work rests at the intersection of two interesting subjects of inquiry. Most obviously, he is contributing to the rapidly growing body of literature on carceral systems. Although The Puzzle of Prison Order is not a work of history, Skarbek answers historian Mary Gibson’s (2011) call for a more global approach to prison studies. Like Peter Leeson’s The Invisible Hook (2009), which looks at the social order of pirates, Skarbek studies the people who seem least likely to establish functional systems of governance—criminals—to show how informal governance institutions form and operate.

Peculiar responsibilization? Exploring a governing strategy in an atypical prison in the Global South

Based on an ethnographic study of “Punta de Rieles” prison in Uruguay, where more than 600 prisoners coexist with increased levels of autonomy in a relatively peaceful environment, and that heavily relies on responsibilization as a strategy of governance, we seek to contribute to the analysis of the characteristics and boundaries of responsibilization in prison settings beyond the Global North. Considering the strong link between responsibilization and neoliberalism in recent prison studies, we describe the loose, lay and informal nature of responsibilization and the elements of collectivism that are present in our case study, connecting this strategy with broader political and cultural developments in this national context.

DRUG-ABUSE INMATES MAQASID SHARIAH QUALITY OF LIFE: A CONCEPTUAL PAPER

Purpose of the study: The primary aim of this study is to explore the feasibility of Maqasid Shariah Quality of Life (MSQoL) in the drug-abuse inmates’ research. MSQoL is a recent theory formulated in terms of quality of life. Therefore, MSQoL proceeds to examine the association of family social support and prison climate rehabilitation on quality of life among drug-abuse inmates. Methodology: This study conceptually focused on a comprehensive analysis of MSQoL, family social support, and prison climate rehabilitation among drug abuse inmates. Main Finding: Researchers propose a model of MSQoL from dimensions of religion and life. Also, this research aims to link both dimensions to family social support and prison climate rehabilitation. Applications of this study: This study will make practical contributions to the Malaysian Prison Department on aspects related to improving drug-abuse inmates’ quality of life on designing appropriate policies and strategies. Novelty/Originality of this study: The current research provides a theoretical framework for prospective researchers engaged in prison studies. Since the quality of life has become the government’s priorities under the 12th Malaysia Plan (2021-2025), the promotion of a new model is essential for a better quality of life of Malaysians.

Radical Togetherness: African-American Literature and Abolition Pedagogy at Parchman and Beyond

This article makes the case that the student-centered learning paradigm that I have aimed to establish at Parchman/Mississippi State Penitentiary as a member of a college-in-prison program represents a prison abolition pedagogy that builds on Martin Luther King and Angela Y. Davis’s coalitional models of abolition work. Drawing from Davis’s abolition-framed conception of teaching in jails and prisons as expressed in her autobiography and her critical prison studies text Are Prisons Obsolete?, I argue that the learning environments that I create collaboratively with students at Parchman similarly respond to incarcerated students’ institution-specific concerns and African-American literary interests in ways that lessen, if only temporarily, the social isolation and educational deprivation that they routinely experience in Mississippi’s plantation-style state penitentiary. Moreover, I am interested in the far-reaching implications of what I have theorized elsewhere as “abolition pedagogy”—a way of teaching that exposes and opposes the educational deprivation, under-resourced and understaffed learning environments, and overtly militarized classrooms that precede and accompany too many incarcerations. As such, this article also focuses on my experience of teaching about imprisonment in African-American literature courses at the University of Mississippi at the same time that I have taught classes at Parchman that honor the African-American literary interests of imprisoned students there.