(RNS) Evangelicals are calling on the Obama administration to enact long-promised prison reforms, saying the incarcerated deserve protection from violence and rape.
In 2003, former president George W. Bush signed the Prison Rape Elimination Act, which aimed to lower the estimated 13 percent of inmates sexually assaulted each year.
The bill called for the Department of Justice to research prison rape and requires prisons to establish prevention programs.
Now, the National Association of Evangelicals is urging the National Prison Rape Elimination Commission to follow up on the standards proposed.
NAE President Leith Anderson and Director of Government Affairs Galen Carey wrote on May 10 to Attorney General Eric Holder that “those behind bars deserve the same protections against violence as those on the outside.”
The NAE pushed for the rape commission to adopt the standards from the 2003 act regardless of the government’s tight budget, suggesting that the reforms will reduce recidivism and lead to cost savings.
In 2003, the bill drew support from varied religious and advocacy groups including the Southern Baptist Convention, the Christian Coalition of America, the NAACP and Human Rights Watch.
Like the NAE, the Human Rights Watch’s Jamie Fellner reaffirmed the organization’s stance in a Jan. 5 letter to Attorney General Holder — saying that “tens of thousands of adults and juveniles are still sexually abused each year because officials have not instituted basic measures to protect them.”
According to the Department of Justice Web site, Holder appointed members to the review panel on Jan. 1 in order to assist the Bureau of Justice Statistics in identifying common characteristics of prison systems and prisoners involved in prison rape.
– Ankita Rao
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posted May 19, 2010 at 9:16 pm
Homosexuality in both women and men prisons is staggering and the rapist don’t fear consequences.
posted May 19, 2010 at 9:58 pm
It would be good to try to deal with it, but Bush and the Republicans have left the budget in a terrible way and there are also a lot of other important needs. Maybe they should suggest some tax increases to be used to fund it.
posted May 20, 2010 at 8:35 am
I’m not at all certain that homosexual rape in prison necessarily represents innate homosexuality. If all the incidents of rape were the acts of hardwired homosexuals, then the prevalence of innate homosexuality would be much greater than estimated in the population. I suspect that many cases represent violent individuals establishing power over other prisoners, just as heterosexual rape outside prison is not really about sex but about power and violence.
posted May 20, 2010 at 9:16 am
Every prisoner in jail isn’t homosexual, cknuck. Geeze! Rape is a control, power thing, from what I understand…really hasn’t much to do with “sex”. It isn’t right at anytime, so hopefully something might finally be done about it.
posted May 20, 2010 at 12:12 pm
Those who do not want to either do or recieve this stuff should not have to put up with it. Segragate the prisoners.
Or is this a dirty little secret that the public realy knows about and condones? Is this an unwritten part of the sentence?
As far as I am concerned this is not necessary or desireable. Let’s do away with it NOW!!!
posted May 20, 2010 at 12:38 pm
I suspect many people do think of it as part of the sentence. And I doubt it happens in the kind of prisons where CEO’s (all too rarely) go.
It would be very useful to have an accurate estimate of what it would cost to fix it. That would be needed, for one thing, to craft the tax increases to pay for it.
posted May 21, 2010 at 12:42 pm
Tax increase has never proven to be an answer for anything I would think that a higher standard toward excellence would be a better way to go and get more for the money we are already paying.
posted May 21, 2010 at 3:08 pm
Tax increase to fund the two wars GWB engaged us in, one pointless, would have prevented the economic disaster we somewhat avoided and somewhat are just now recovering from.
And if you think you can get the same number of guards to watch what goes on a lot better without expensive technology and without more cells I think you are fantasizing.
posted May 21, 2010 at 11:28 pm
I happen to know a little about the prison system I volunteer a lot. Most of the contraband is brought in by the guards; some guards are so busy doing things other than their jobs. Some guards are ill equipped some are in league with the governing inmates bodies (gangs). Its like little cities in prisons and thanks to some guards you can get just about anything you can afford. Increased guards have already been in place and for many prisons it just means increased corruption. Go ahead give them more money.