The End of Prison as Rehabilitation

“Washington State Penitentiary will be one the state’s eight major prisons locked down today as part of a budget-cutting exercise.” [Related: the Walla Walla Union Bulletin’s own budget-cutting exercises include omitting words such as “of.”] But yes, going forward, the state prisons will lock down once a month to save money — though good news, prisoners “will be allowed out for meals”! Though they “will not be able to attend education classes, participate in treatment programs or go to work assignments.” So it begins! Now with staff furloughs and full-on shut-downs, we can stop pretending that even America’s non-privatized prisons are about reforming, when they’re really just about incarceration.