“Vague” Rules-According to Prison Policy, the prison departments in different states punish people for arbitrary reasons. Many supposed violations are open to interpretation. Think lying, cursing, disrespect, disobeying orders, having unauthorized possessions, or being in an unauthorized area. Like during slavery, these restrictions are more about control than enforcing meaningful rules.
Gendered Violence-Speaking of “disrespect,” enslaved Black women were frequently punished for “insolence.” Today, incarcerated women receive disproportionately more write-ups than men. Officers target Black women for sharing menstrual products, having “unsatisfactory” hairstyles, and talking back. Sound familiar?
The “Good Prisoner"-Acting “respectable” to get on enslavers’ good side was encouraged when demotion was punishment, much like within prison walls. Today, incarcerated people are punished for anything ranging from having tattoos and being considered untidy, to associating with the “wrong” visitors.
The “Bad Prisoner”-Still, others, whether enslaved or incarcerated, have risked being “bad” to escape captivity altogether. That’s why prisons punish those who dare to file lawsuits, refuse to work, refuse drug tests, or directly protest.
Prisons and plantations designed disciplinary measures not just to exploit us, but to make us believe we deserve punishment for existing as we are. Acting “right” can be a survival strategy, but not if we internalize that we’re only worthy of survival if we do what self-appointed “authorities” want, wherever we are.