The idea surrounding this thesis project is to highlight the injustice that surrounds women prisons. The ethical flaws behind the way women are treated within the prisons, specifically when it comes to medical needs. The focus of our project was narrowed to medical neglect. This project falls under the field of law and ethics.
Approximately 219,000 women are incarcerated every year, and this number has been constantly growing. When looking at justice, more than 60% of the population of incarcerated women have not been committed of a crime, in other terms, more than 60% of the population of women are still awaiting trial. Out of the 219,000 women that are incarcerated every year, 80% of women in jails are mothers. Here is where the focus of our thesis project surrounds. 2 million children under the age of 18 have a parent in prison, a majority of those children are actually under the age of 10. Only 9 state prisons have nursery programs for mothers to parent children for a finite period of time anywhere from 30 days to 30 months. With a nursery capacity of only 18 mothers, only mothers with a nonviolent conviction can even be part of the nursery program. With approximately 4% of women in state prisons and 3% of women pregnant during sentencing, more than 2,000 babies are born to incarcerated women annually. Policies vary by jurisdiction; however, women are frequently shackled with handcuffs, leg irons, and waist chains during transport, delivery, and post-delivery. This blatantly violates the eight amendment of cruel and unusual punishment. Really only 10 states have passed legislation prohibiting restraint. The Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Departments of Correction in 13 states have internal policies that are similar to prohibiting. Remaining 27 states women are shackled.
Based on the Guardian it is also shown that women are not given the proper menstrual care products. “At York, each cell, which houses two female inmates, receives five pads per week to split. I’m not sure what they expect us to do with the fifth, but this comes out to 10 totals for each woman, allowing for only one change a day in an average five-day monthly cycle” (Chandra Bozelko). The whole reasoning here is that pads and menstrual products are not a luxury, it is a true necessity and BASIC HUMAN RIGHT. At this point it is a shot on an individual's dignity.
This project will be focusing on three aspects of the prison system in relation to women: pregnancy and prenatal care, lack of menstrual products, as well as basic health needs. The main goal of this project is to shed light on the injustice present. The sources that will be analyzed are prison personnel, previous inmates, activists, as well as analysis on past and ongoing cases related to this topic.