Click on the following links. Please note these will open in a new window.

 

Female Offenders Behind Bars: A Detailed Look at Percentages and Rates
Audio Link:  http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=174406972&m=174406969

This interview discusses changing demographics of female offenders and the impacts of the War on Drugs on these demographics.

1. What are key findings of this report regarding incarceration trends of women in the U.S.?
2. How do the authors explain these findings?

 

Minority Female Offenders Compared to Caucasian Female Offenders in American History
Video Link:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYPG0w-60Cg

In this video, Kimberle Crenshaw, a leading academic on intersectionality, discusses trends that lead to African-American women's overrepresentation in the criminal justice system.

1. What systems beyond prison does Kimberle Crenshaw highlight as disproportionately targeting African-American women and girls, leading to their later involvement in the criminal justice system?
2. How does she hope to address this disproportionality?

 

Issues Related to the Modern-Day Female Offender Population
Video Link:  http://video.pbs.org/video/2365312704/

This interview with Piper Kerman, author of "Orange is the New Black" discusses a range of issues that confront women in the justice system.

1. What issues facing female offenders does Piper Kerman highlight in her interview and her memoir, “Orange is the New Black”?
2. How does she discuss the intersections of race, economic disadvantage, and mental illness in female prisons?

 

Female Offenders as Mothers
Web Link:  http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/07/prison-born/395297/

This Atlantic article discusses research on the outcomes for babies of incarcerated mothers.

1. What is the history of nurseries in prison?
2. What are the impacts of nurseries in prison for women, children, and society?

 

Female Offenders as Mothers
Video Link Video: http://video.pbs.org/video/2324043085/

This video explores the stories of how incarceration impacts the relationships between incarcerated mothers and their children.

1. How does incarceration impact relationships between incarcerated mothers and their children?
2. How does this Girl Scout troop program highlighted in this video affect these relationships?

 

The Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003
Audio Link: http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=9032287&m=9032288 

This interview documents one woman's story of being raped by a prison guard.

1. How does this woman prove she was raped by a prison guard?
2. What are the risks if she did not keep her sweatpants?
3. How is she hoping to use her story to create change?

 

Female Offenders and Treatment Implications
Web Link:  http://www.anewwayoflife.org/  

This website reveals the history, mission, and programs of A New Way of Life, a nonprofit dedicated to helping formerly incarcerated women reenter society.

1. How does A New Way of Life support formerly incarcerated women in reentering society?
2. What specific programs does the organization offer?
3. What lessons from the program’s successes can be adapted by criminal justice agencies?