3-Strikes Caused by Increased Social Construction of
Criminals as Evil Monsters
We see it often in war time: propaganda is spewed out to make the enemy
look less human, more sinister and evil; and perhaps more animalistic or with
monster-like features. There is a purpose for this transformation. Such
propaganda makes it easier for us to hate, maim and kill the enemy.
Today the U.S. government is not at battle with any large foreign nations.
The Cold War has ended and the "Evil Empire" is no more. The U.S.
politicians still want to portray themselves as "heroes," so they
need to find and dehumanize some new enemies. Who are they? They are the
criminals. The new war is their "war on drugs." The battlefield is
here, the enemy is the person next door and us.
There is very little evidence that criminal propensities are caused
biologically. In addition, most studies demonstrate that only a very small
percentage of criminals actually commit crime consistently over the course of
their life (except, of course, people suffering from addictions because they
continue to break drug laws).
The word "criminal" is a name that conjures up some immediate
images. Our TV shows and movies generally show "criminals" to be
murderers, kidnappers and rapists. In the movies and on TV, the criminals are
generally portrayed as "evil" in every aspect of their life. They are
mean to everybody and usually not portrayed with any redeeming characteristics.
The movies and TV do this for a purpose: They want to set up a
"heroes" versus "villains" story. The more evil and
dangerous the villain, the more heroic and brave the hero.
The news media has also changed more and more into an entertainment
venue--which means they also find it to be fiscally beneficial if they tell
stories with "heroes" and "villains." Therefore, they also
do their best to show the "criminals" as "evil" and
"monster-like," while portraying our government officials as the
"heroes" (unless, of course, the government officials break the
law--and then, suddenly, they are also transformed into "evil
monsters").
The truth, however, is that people are not born monsters, and
"criminals" are not that different from the rest of us. Of course,
the way our legislators have increased the number of criminal laws, today it is
rare that any of us can say that we are not also "criminals." In
addition, a "felony" is a lot different than past legal definitions
of a "felony." The dollar limits to reach a criminal
"felony" have not been increased with our inflation rates; and, more
and more politicians think they are being "tough on crime" by
creating more and more laws that are classified as felonies.
The imagery and symbolism has been turned up a notch as politicians call
for "super-max" prisons to warehouse "predatory" criminals.
And, the primary benefactors of such prisons--the prison guards--have helped
increase the animalistic and monster symbolism. Every chance they get, they
make statements such as the "worst of the worst," and "predators
on hunt."
The reality is that many of the prisoners in California are there because
of property and drug offenses. And, most violent crime is committed against
victims who know the offender--not from predators stalking strangers. And, to
the extent they have committed harm against others, it is not because they were
born with such propensities--but, rather, it is because society has helped make
them that way.
A vicious circle has been created. The more and more "criminals"
are portrayed as "monsters," the more politicians are afraid to stick
up for accused defendants, the guilty, and prisoners. And, in fact, politicians
have discovered that the greater the "criminals" are portrayed as
"monsters," the more the "lock 'em up" politicians are
portrayed as "heroes." The imagery is heightened even more if
politicians are seen helping the "victims." As the "Victims'
Rights Movement" has increased in visibility, politicians have been riding
the victims' coat-tails posing as their "heroes." Pete Wilson, Dan
Lungren and Mike Reynolds have been the masters of the deception. The 3-Strikes
law--the master tool.
The following are some statistics and comments from books and articles on
the social construction of criminals as evil and monsters. PLEASE SEND US NEW
DATA AND ARTICLES IF YOU HAVE THEM.
Former prison official for 27 years writes editorial
on the fact that prisoners are not any more "predatory" now than in
the past.
Steven J. Martin, a former general counsel and chief of staff to the Texas
prison system, wrote an informed editorial against the California Department of
Corrections and the increased inmate killings which occurred in California in
recent years. In particular, Martin discussed much of the symbolism and imagery
currently being used the California prison guards. Some of his comments are
stated below:
On a national level, the advent of super-max prisons, beginning with the
control unit of the Federal Bureau of Prisons at Marion, Ill., has to some
extent fostered the idea that American corrections is now faced with a breed of
criminal often referred to as "super-predators." While clearly there
are imminently dangerous offenders in all maximum security prisons, I am not
convinced that there has been a dramatic rise in violence in American prisons
during the past 10 years. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau
of Justice Statistics, the 1995 Census of State and Federal Correctional
Facilities found that from 1990 to 1995, the annual number of assualts on other
inmates dropped from 31 per 1,000 to 27 per 1,000, and the number of assaults
on staff remained unchanged at 15 per 1,000.
Criminal justice professionals and victims' rights groups like to toss
out for the public the most simplistic charges and imagery. Utilizing a term
with an animalistic connotation such as "predator" establishes an
almost moral imperative to deal with such inmates by employing extraordinary
measures. It has been my experience, having been involved with many maximum
security prisons over a 27-year career, that there has arisen in the past
decade a group of inmates that has suddenly taken on Nietzschean qualities. It
is not unlike the perception that crime has increased dramatically in recent
years when in fact we are in a period of declining crime rates.
The national trend in American penology of demonizing the typical
convict has melded superbly with the growing power of the Correctional Peace
Officers Assn., the California prison guards' union. One need only review the
union's video, "Behind the Wall, the Toughest Beat in California," to
see how the union is using such rhetoric, for example describing inmates as
"predators always on the hunt," to further its agenda. Such rhetoric,
when combined with unprecedented campaign contributions to California
politicians, represents a potentially formidable nongovernmental entity. LATimes, 7/22/98.
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3-Strikes.
Date last modified: 11/1/98.
