Blog 21

One of the main focuses of the NAFCO is to bring greater awareness to the issues of sexual assault and harassment for women correctional officers which I think also falls in line with some of Britton’s recommendations. Bringing greater awareness to this issue would help to decrease the male dominance of the field because it would allow for the discussion of women’s issues to be presented into the field as well. The discussion of women’s topics would help to break down the reality that prisons are no longer so male dominated thus the prison system should not be as gendered as it is in order for it o function properly. One of the recommendations that Britton gives is bringing awareness to women’s stories in prison in order to combat the male-dominated stereotype that prisons are given which I think would be accomplished by the NAFCO’s push to bring greater legislative protections for the unique problems that women face in prisons. This new awareness would hopefully bring about change in the working conditions of prisons so that they can better accommodate women’s safety and thus their ability to thrive in their environment instead of being a victim of it. NAFCO also works to educate the public on the issues that face women correctional officers in order to develop a more balanced and realistic stereotype of prisons. This work by NAFCO is also supported by Britton who sees the realization by the public of the “real” prison dynamics as being a great help to dismembering the gendered culture of prisons (an important aspect of her theory of gendered organization). I think it is also important to note that by improving the working conditions of women in prisons, it would also help to improve the conditions of men as the women would be better equipped to perform well at their job which affects the other officers due to the intimate nature of their work.

Blog 20

The first striking feature of the news coverage of the hostage situation is the fact that they make a huge deal out of Schriro’s position as prison chief. Both articles make it a point to elaborate on Schriro’s credentials that qualify her for the job despite her gender which further goes to show how male-dominated the prison system is. Also I think it is important to note how the articles emphasized the fact that Schriro really did turn the prisons into more productive and rehabilitative institutions in order to reduce the recidivism rate which was a struggle for her to accomplish since she already had the bias of gender against her and her authority. I also think that the news coverage of the hostage situation shows how praised Schriro’s “female” traits of patience and effective planning are in regards to her ability to overcome the hostage situation in a successful manner. I think it is implied in the way that the news covers the story that if a man had been handling the situation then they would have been more prone to resort to violence and just storm the tower which could have lead to the killing of the hostages and possibly others. Schriro does not storm the tower but instead she uses time, negotiations, and other alternative options presented to her in order to overcome the situation in the best possible way that it could be overcome. While prisons are very male dominated I think that it is important to note how quickly the news praises Schriro for her female traits and how positively they have impacted the prison system. The positive news coverage of the way that Schriro handled the hostage situation is a step towards the realization that having prisons be so gendered and male dominated is not what is best for that system or the outside communities.

I think that the hostage situation goes to show the poor training that correctional officers receive, especially on the state level, which focuses more on being fearful and aware of possible violence in prisons yet not how to handle these situations. In Britton’s interviews it becomes quite evident that the trainings do not focus on how the officers are supposed to cope with the situations that they come across whether it be hostage situations, interactions with the opposite sex or the metal games that inmates may try to play. Many of the interviewees comment on how they felt under prepared when they finally entered the prisons and had to learn the necessary aspects of their job along the way since the trainings did not cover the real issues they come across. The training should focus more on how to handle the real situations that the offices come in contact with so that they can transition from being just “keepers” of the inmates into real correctional officers who help to “correct” the inmates in order to better them for release. It seems to me that the trainings main focus is just to instill fear into the officers in the hopes that they will effectively handle any violent situations that may arise instead of actually training the officers in a uniform way to handle different violent situations.

I do also think that despite all of the positive coverage that came out of the hostage situation like praise of the female prison chief it also lends fuel to the argument that women should not be allowed to guard male inmates due to their inability to combat them and the increased danger that they face in regards to sexual assault. While it is true that women do have an increased chance of being sexually assault by the inmates rather than their male counter parts, I think that this once again goes to the lack of training in this area due to how male dominated the training is. Issues of sexual assault or any issues relating to gender obstacles are not addressed in the trainings due to the fear of what would happen if gender was explicitly talked about rather than the way it is implicitly implied.

Blog 19

The media plays a part in continuing the sexual discrimination of women in male –dominated jobs by highlighting the very few situations that make people weary of having women in those jobs. Turing on the news will show stories of sexual harassment towards women in such jobs which begins to spark debate over whether women should be allowed to work in those fields or if it is essentially too dangerous for them due to their inability to handle and avoid such situations. For example, when reading the news coverage of the Lewis Prison hostage situation, the vast majority of the coverage is on the women officer and her ordeal during the situation while the male officer is rarely mentioned. While he was released after 7 days and the women officer had to stay an extra 8 days with the inmates, his side of the story and what he had to go through during that time is not told. Instead the media coverage focuses on the inability of the women to overtake the inmates and restore control at the beginning of the siege, her repeated sexual abuse by the inmates, and the way that she used mental combat in order to survive the ordeal instead of physical combat. During this time I am sure there were many discussions surrounding the true need for women officers in prisons and if it was greater than their perceived danger. This also goes to play upon Britton’s discussion of how the use of force is so attributed to male officers by both of the genders and is seen as something that is necessary. In male prisons, many times when there is the need to use violence the male officers are called in to do so and if a female officer is there at the time they are quickly relieved so that a male ,who is seen as stronger and more capable, may take her place. This undermines the authority of the women in the eyes of the inmates and the other officers and it makes seem like she is not qualified for the job. In women’s prisons, males are used as the enforcers due to their added strength but also because it allows for them to assert their place in the prison and gain the respect of the inmates. Either situation down plays the capabilities of women officers and only helps to solidify the occupation as being male-dominated.

Blog 18

In the prison systems, it is a fact that males are the norm in regards to both inmates and correctional officers which automatically makes it hard for training to be gender neutral. Due to the fact that historically prisons have been male dominated it is essentially an unsaid rule that when discussing prisons it is in reference to males, even if it is in training. The women and men that Britton interview are both able to realize this fact and do buy into the thought that prisons are masculine in nature. During the trainings, the constant fear of violence is drilled into the correctional officers in order to keep them aware of their surroundings and ready to combat any kind of situation that the inmates can spring upon them. Many of the interviewees commented on how the trainings focused mostly on the physical aspects and requirements of the job rather than the mental part of the job which is used more on a day to day basis. When discussing and teaching the physical aspects that are needed in a correctional officer, it is implied that this means they must be masculine since strength is socially attributed to male dominance. In this way the trainings emphasis the male gender and the perceived positive traits that come with it such as strength. This is not only a problem because it silently brings gender into the trainings but it also does not allow for the vocalization of female gender aspects and differences since that goes against the norm. The interviewees state the disadvantage of this as being their lack of awareness regarding what to expect when dealing with women inmates. They had been taught in training to focus on their own physicality and subconsciously taught that they would be dealing with men so when they are put into the different environment of a women’s prison they feel very unprepared. Women are inherently different from men and it can also be argued that they need more mental guarding than physical guarding which is something that is not emphasized in training.

Blog 17

Building relationships with the inmates is detrimental to the correctional officers because it undermines their authority which is something they need in order to effective keep order. It is especially important to the officers in the North Carolina Women’s prison due to the more lax organization of the prison which also makes it harder for the officers to keep their authority over the prisoners. The officers realize that they cannot build relationships with the inmates because that is not part of their job; their job is to keep order and protect the inmates from each other. In regards to the other officers, building relationships with inmates compromises the security of the rest of their fellow officers as the relationship may lead to the bringing in of contraband into the prison which could then be a breach in security. In regards to the inmates, the officers cannot build relationships with the inmates because then the inmates learn to take advantage of the officers and thus lose their respect for their authority. The officers also do not encourage relationships between the inmates because of the intense feelings that it can bring about which causes the inmates to shift focus from bettering themselves to the well-being of someone else. This shift in focus can cause the inmates to act in ways that are violent and against the rules as they try to protect their girlfriend and their relationship. It also causes the inmates to essentially have an escape from the prison life since they can go about having all of the feelings and thoughts that go along with a relationship on the outside which is something the officers do not want since it is an important aspect of prison to be reminded on a daily basis that the inmates are in prison to be punished for crimes.

Compared to the prison environment that Britton describes in the beginning of her book, which is the stereotyped view of prisons, it is very different from the prison environment that is presented in the documentary. First of all the prison is filled completely with seemingly calm women inmates instead of the stereotypical violent male inmates. The women wear skirts and dresses in pale colors instead of the stereotypical orange jumpsuits that are so popular in media portrayals. The next difference is that there is a majority of female correctional officers working all areas of the prison instead of the stereotypical male officers with a few female officers doing less dangerous work such as clerical. It seems that in the North Carolina Women’s Prison it is the opposite of the stereotype where women officers are the majority and male officers are in the minority. I think it is also very appropriate that the documentary did show some of the added hardships that are on the male officers to conduct themselves in such a manner to avoid a loss of authority with the women inmates and officers by being very careful of the way they handle themselves. The male officers realize that they are in the minority and that they can easily be taken advantage of or accused of different violations by the inmates due to their opposite gender so they make sure to keep their conduct very professional and masculine. While many of the women correctional officers felt that it was important for them to keep a professional and strict guard over the inmates, there were also women officers who were more friendly and relaxed around the inmates which I think is a luxury that the male officers do not have. It was also interesting to see that the women had many different training programs offered to them in order for them to learn a trade that could be useful to them upon their release in order to help them better their life once out of prison. In the stereotype of prisons, one does not think of helping the prisoners but rather of punishing prisoners through the stripping of all things enjoyable. In Britton’s book this also follows in line with the long standing thought that women in prison should be rehabilitated through such means as job training and education while male prisoners are less often afforded such programs and instead have their incarceration focus around punishment and control with no thought of how they will survive a crime free life once released.

Blog 16

I think that the biggest difference I noticed between the paths the men and women took to get into the field of corrections was the motivations behind their decisions. Men it seemed were motivated by their need for a military type of work environment whether they had been in the military in the past or just felt the need to be a part of a strict, militaristic environment. It seemed that the men liked the structure and power that a job in corrections gave them allowing for them to showcase their masculinity while getting praised for it. They were recruited for the job through these praises of their military-type traits and how well they would be able to effectively guard the inmates from themselves and each other. They were also drawn to the job because of the other benefits it afforded them such as economic stability which to many was important due to their lack of higher education and specialized job skills.

Women on the other hand were drawn to the job of correctional officer due to economic causes that allowed for them to afford themselves and their children a better life. Many of these women had been stuck at clerical jobs with very little chance of advancement and small salaries that were barely able to allow them to provide for their families. They were recruited through word-of-mouth from other women who had started working in the prisons as they were able to get them testimonies and real life stories regarding the type of work that working in the prisons would involve. Once the women were able to hear and see the difference that a correctional job made in other women’s lives they were able to make the decision to move into the prison system. It is interesting to see that men relied on their personality traits such as masculinity and the benefits afforded to those in corrections to convince them to join the field while women relied on the testimonies of other women to reassure them that going into that field is possible and valuable to their future.

Blog 15

Men’s prisons started out as institutions meant to punish criminals with intermediate times of rehabilitative pushes in-between. While women had been in prisons before the time that official women prisons were established, they were few in number and seen as abnormalities that were of great inconvenience to the prison system as a whole thus many of them were immediately pardoned of their crime so that they could be set free (as was the case in Arizona’s beginning jails as well). When women’s prisons were established they had a greater push to rehabilitate women so that they could function properly once released through different job training programs and educational programs. Women as inmates goes against our socialized views of women as being gentle, caring and frail thus that is why they were so ignored during the beginning years of prisons.
Women are growing in their presence in the prison system which is of great concern due to the added private responsibilities that many women are charged with handling such as child care. With the rise in women in prisons there is also a trickle effect of different rises in such areas as social services for children and their care since their mothers are stuck in prisons and unable to take care of them. This rise in women and decrease in motherly care for their children is why many prisons and research are trying to once again focus their resources on rehabilitative efforts so that the women are better equipped to take care of their children and stay out of jail upon their release. This difference in the private sector of women is an advantage when they are inmates because it allows for them to receive more resources such as education that will allow them to better achieve a crime free life once released compared to men who due to their lack of responsibilities in their private sector and their huge numbers are often not afforded such helpful resources.

Blog 14

Britton’s use of the theory of gendered organization in her research helps to shape the types of questions and thus her interactions with her interview subjects. In the ensuing chapters you can see how Britton encourages her interview subjects to answer questions focused on the topic of gendered organization in their field of work and thus reflect on the idea as well as how it impacts them.

Britton explains the theory of gendered organization using a three-fold approach that encompasses structure, agency, and culture all having a part in continuing the process of organization gendering. First there is the structure of organization that separates males and females in regards to their perceived private and public sectors. This division is based on women’s ability to reproduce and thus their responsibility to care for the children they produce which takes away from their ability to devote their whole being to a job which is what men are seen as being capable of increasing their production value for a company. The structure of companies place emphasis on the ability to be a constant producer with no interference from one’s private life which is seen as a male trait and not a women trait thus women are not favored which creates segregated occupations. The next aspect of gendered organization is the agency through which male and female inequalities are perpetuated. Due to men and women being inherently different, they form alliances based on being the same sex in order to advance their genders causes and interests since they are the same and it is very valuable to them. This creates greater inequality in the workplace as each gender interacts in a way to promote their genders causes and interests in order to be accepted by those of the same gender and even those of the opposite gender. The last aspect that comes together to promote organization gendering is the culture in which we grow up in that gives the meanings and thus justification to the differences between men and women. Through media, socialization, and language we are taught about the differences between the genders and what they are supposed to mean such as the fact that men are usually more muscular than women thus they are stronger physically and mentally. These different meanings given to the biological differences between men and women allow for us to justify our actions that promote inequality between the genders thus it allows us to continue organization gendering. These three aspects work together to promote the theory of gendered organization in the workplace subsequently continuing to promote gender inequality.

Blog 13

Not until Britton’s opening descriptions of the ways that prisons have been portrayed in the media had I really realized the discrepancies or stereotypes that are being ingrained into our society. It is so true that despite my best efforts, the first images of prison that pop into my mind when the word prison is mentioned are of commanding military type men trying to keep guard over the constant violence that is started among the hugely deviant male inmates. While I have never been in a prison, I have done a lot of research into them thus I know that violence is rare and that the internal environment is not shrouded in darkness yet it still does not affect the immediate images and thoughts that flood into my mind when the word “prison” is mentioned. The stereotypes of prisons, the inmates and the everyday activities in that environment has so been altered in its portrayal in the media and everyday life that we have been socialized to think of prisons in such ways and to combat the true views of prisons even when they are factual presented to us. It is hard for many to believe the truth about the prison environment due to not only the media but also the perception that prisons are supposed to be a place of punishment for criminals so we inherently think of them as places of violence and male-dominance. When women are portrayed in prisons as inmates or correctional officers they are seen as possessing masculine traits since prisons are seen as being male-dominated thus in order for women to “fit” into prisons they need to be able to fit into the male stereotype that prisons are given. When jobs in such areas as prisons or other male-dominated fields try to recruit women they also enforce the male stereotype by hiring women that they see as possessing masculine traits in order to continue the gender segregation in the workplace. Women must therefore compromise their femininity in order to be hired into these jobs yet that is still not enough to have them fully accepted in such jobs for they are still seen as an outcast because they are not a man.

Blog 12

I think that occupational segregation would happen no matter what laws we do or could have against discrimination. Discrimination, especially gender fueled discrimination, is a part of our lives everyday due to the way that we are socialized as children and on into life. While everyone does not hold that belief that men should be strong and women should be fragile, every single person can give examples from their life when they have heard that saying or been taught to believe that saying. When we are young, boys play with trucks and are told to grow up to be strong men while girls play with dolls and are told to grow up to be caring women which helps us to shape the gendered perceptions that will eventually permeate into every aspect of our lives, including our work life. I think it is also hard to escape gender discrimination because there are inherent differences between men and women in regards to biology so many people use these differences to justify their discrimination which is why it is so hard to battle and bring to light compared to other types of discrimination. While men and women are different biologically that does not mean that their differences hinder either one in any way not to effectively do a particular job, they just might bring different skills to the job in order to successfully complete it.
I think that it would only be of benefit to men to have women in male dominated occupations because it would bring a different perspective into such jobs which might help to make it become more successful and efficient. The different skills and personality traits that women can bring into such jobs would help to fuel new ideas and growth in these jobs and the same goes with men entering women dominated jobs as well. By incorporating the opposite sex into a strongly gender dominated occupation, it helps to battle such gender stereotypes that we are taught as children and only by consciously battling such stereotypes will we be able to overcome them and see the harm that they have caused.