Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing

Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing

Introduction

When it comes to life in prison, the general perception of everyone is that of a harsh and brutal life for those who get locked behind the bars. Seldom people think about the ones who govern and live with these people at the prison. The book Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing, penned by Ted Conover, is a firsthand account of the author and is set at Ossining which is a correctional facility in New York. It unveils the story of correctional officers, of those who maintain the discipline in the correctional facilities, and keep the keys and the guns. The work environment and the facilities affect them as much as they affect the prisoners. They need to be heard and the book serves the purpose of an eye opener. The memories haunt them even after they have left the job (Werner, 2002).

"I thought it was a role, not my life. Two years later, I still dream of being a guard at least once a week. I think about it all the time." (Ted, 2001, p. 43)

Discussion

The author sheds light on the people who work as correctional officers. He tells a difference between the life they actually live and the life they estimate when they apply for the job. Different people have different expectations and different concepts when it comes to a dream job. There are some who are fascinated with the idea of working for a law enforcement agency and being part of the system (Riley, 2000). Then, there are those who get into this field because they were working for the military earlier and they do not want to waste the skills they learnt there. Another category of people are those who just want a steady stream of income. In this pursue of their dream, these people make many sacrifices and live away from their families sharing the same walls with the people who need to be locked. Every day within those walls deteriorates their personality. The life is as vicious for them as it is for the prisoners (Tirella, 2000).

The author wanted to be a journalist, when he failed entry he gave the test of the training academy and joined the officer position. However, it is only after he comes on the job that he realizes what is it like to work as a correctional officer. He realizes that he is at a place which is known for killing 614 inmates. The rules are so strict that even the enforcer of the rule has to have the nerves of steel to be able to enforce them. These are rules that are abhorred, hated, loathed by the people upon whom these laws are enforced.

There are many things that happen within these walls that are extremely distressing. For instance, non-consensual sex is very common although the author claims it is not so at Sing Sing where he was working as a correctional officer. In addition, the author states that anyone ...