WOMEN IN PRISON

Women in Prison



Women in Prison

Women in Prison

When you look behind the walls of these nations prisons you will see that the vast majority of prisoners are there for non-violent crimes; this is especially true in the case of women. In 1976, as today, women represent a small portion of this country's prison population. It is for this reason that the needs of women in prison have been overlooked, especially in the area of meaningful treatment and programs, and this lack of support continues right through to post release needs as well. Historically the programs available to women in prison have been based on the programs developed for incarcerated men.

When we look at women's crime we find that the type of offences committed by women reflects the social and economic standing of women in our society. 75% of the women serving time are there for minor offences; shoplifting, fraud or drug and alcohol offences. When we examine the needs of women in prison we see that they reflect the same needs as those of women in the community. 35% of provincially and 48% of federally sentenced women have a grade 9 education or lower - 40% have been classified as illiterate. The majority of women doing time were unemployed at the time of the arrest. 70% of the world's poor are women. Single mothers with children under the age of 18 have a poverty rate of 57% and if the mother herself is below the age of 25 this rate jumps to 93%. 2/3 of the all federally sentenced women are single mothers, for many of these women incarceration means losing their children to social services and then having to try and regain custody upon their release. 72% of provincially and 82% of federally sentenced women have histories of physical and /or sexual abuse. In terms of violent offences committed by women 62% of these charges are for "low-level" or "common assault".

There are currently 64 women serving life sentences for murder. Most women doing time for violent offences committed their crime against a spouse or partner and they are likely to report having been physically or sexually abused - often by the person they assaulted.

Until recently, there was only 1 prison for federally sentenced women, so if convicted and sentenced for a period of more than two years you would be sent to maximum security Prison for Women (P4W), in Kingston Ontario. For many women this meant total isolation from family, friends and community. P4W was built in 1934, (prior to that federally sentenced women were held at Kingston Pen). The lack of relevant programs, the programs that a prisoner needs to expedite their release and the isolation of the women from their home communities, amounted to torture for the women sent there.

The incidence of self mutilation in prison is twice the rate of that in society and is even more prevalent within the women's prisons, especially during times of stress. Slashing is seen as a serious disciplinary offence ...