Sunday, March 17, 2013

Our prison system needs some inspiration


The U.S. prison system is not the most popular topic but I assure you the video below is inspiring! It reflects the power of thinking "outside the box" and applying it to prison rehabilitation. It also reflects the power of change if given the right environment.

Many may want to forget about those on the inside but think about this - approximately 700,000 felons are hitting the street each year! Simple improvements can make significant change, that is, unless we like supporting the Prison Industrial Complex and occupants with tax dollars.

One thing for certain, sending former inmates out the door on the wrong foot, insures they will be back. The crimes committed affect all of us.

The U.S. has the largest prison population in the world. Modeling programs that are proven to reduce violence on the inside, and ultimately the outside, would save lives.

The benefits of dance and exercise are too numerous to mention but implemented in a maximum security prison in the Philippines, gives new meaning to organized crime. As Albert Camus said, "Freedom is nothing else but a chance to be better."

Dance allows those incarcerated to participate in a positive and coordinated activity that creates a bond with others. For some, a first time experience and creates an environment of teamwork where inmates
are no longer exclusively focused on self.

The investment minimal, and proven to reduce overall recidivism rates. One only need care about making society safer and look at the proof. Blown away, one reporter summed it up like this, "When you free the mind . . . the mass will follow.Because the reporter had such an accent I could swear he said, :he ass will follow!" I think he was right either way! ~ Written by Kym L. Pasqualini


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