Rehabilitation, not!

I once had the naive idea that one of the primary goals of the prison system was rehabilitation. Nothing can be further from the truth. There is not even a precept of a sign of any attempt to help the people in the prisons of Arizona. In my experience, the vast majority of those in here are good people who made mistakes. A mistake that, in most cases, destroys their life forever, putting them beyond care, consideration, hope, or help. I will start with general observations.

First, and tragically, there is extremely limited access to any type of mental health therapy or counseling. Just the experience of prison is enough to obliterate the mental state of even well-balanced human beings. Add to that the fact that many are here because of an already unbalanced mental state, and you have an epidemic of insanity. Psych drugs are prescribed like M&M's and positive, genuine therapy is unheard of.

I made more progress on my personal issues in the month before I was incarcerated with four or five visits to a therapist than the whole year since. And I am making efforts and through reading, support groups, and attempts to get counseling. Many people are unable to do even that.

There are groups for AA, NA (narcotics anonymous), and SA (sexaholics anonymous). Allow me to share my experience with SA. Meetings are held once a week with an outside volunteer. The group is canceled, for one reason or another, about half of the time. In group, which usually has 4 to 6 participants on a yard of 1400 sex offenders, several individuals, including the sponsor, spend time "telling stories" that often have nothing to do with sex addiction.

But wait, it gets better. The library schedule changed so that the only time I could go to the library was during the meetings. Now, there is an evening library, for those unable to attend regular hours. While the SA classes are not that great, I still feel that it's better than nothing, so I applied for "evening library" so I could continue the only thing available for sex addiction on a sex offender yard. I was denied, twice. So I am forced to continue my "therapy" on my own. This shows how the administration views efforts of self-help.

I don't know if the AA and NA classes are as inefficient as this. Nearly all sex offenders are legally required to take classes upon release, which can be after a long time. They used to hold those classes here, but they did not count towards the requirement. Of course, when we get out, we have to pay for those classes, which is why they did not count, I assume.

There are a few mandatory "rehabilitation" classes. I am currently in "cognitive reshaping" - it's a (supposedly) 22 week course. It also was canceled nearly every other week and ended up being a grand total of six classes. There is a "reentry" class that one must take when close to release. Apparently much of the information is completely untrue.

The idea that "prisons create prisoners" is, unfortunately, very true. Without a positive, professional, efficient and frequent opportunities to learn, to heal, to understand, and to investigate the factors contributing to one's choices, inmates must rely on each other as role models, therapists, and as a support network. This results in a scenario of the blind leading the blind. I have never tended toward violence in my entire life, but since I've been here I've had several episodes of wanting to punch people. I have refrained thus far, but it's only a matter of time. (I just asked my neighbor if I could punch him. Why? Because I feel like punching somebody!)

 Without authentic opportunities to create and improve life, academic, and vocational skills, felons will generally go back to a similar lifestyle. And in many cases, like my own, when a previous vocation is not available to a felon, they can "learn" from and be influenced by unsavory opportunities that might previously have never been considered. Most in here lack the strength, intellect, and ambition to make prison an opportunity for growth, healing, learning, or self reflection, which should be a primary goal for the "correctional" institutions of this country.