Reformation of inmates works best if it begins before they get out

Before they set foot in prison, Canada’s inmates are already among the most vulnerable people in the country - especially women. Coming out, the obstacles to making real change can be insurmountable.

Local organization urges Senate to plan beyond prison walls

On Thursday evening, the Senate’s committee on human rights met in Kitchener to explore human rights of prisoners in the correctional system.

The national tour is studying the situation of vulnerable or disadvantaged groups, including Indigenous people, visible minorities, women and those with mental health issues and exploring conditions of confinement, the effect of segregation on prisoners and access to mental health treatment.

While it’s an important topic, it’s also critical to also look beyond the prison walls and to adequately fund programs that support people after their release.

We need to acknowledge that even before they set foot in prison, Canada’s inmates are already among the most vulnerable people in the country — especially women. Among federally sentenced women:

• 86 per cent have experienced physical abuse and 68 per cent have experienced sexual abuse

• 79 per cent don’t have a high school diploma

• 78 per cent were unemployed at the time of their admission to prison

No, in fact prison will further impair and marginalize people.

The committee’s own news release illustrates this with the story of a woman who spent four years in prison in her early 20s.

Now a regional advocate for the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies, Alia Pierini “told senators she could never have imagined the lingering psychological, economic and social impacts prison had on her life.

Those first three to six months are the most critical part of the transition period from prison to community.

Without appropriate supports in the community, chances of successful reintegration are limited.

Yet there is ZERO earmarked federal funding for communitybased reintegration programs.

As I urged the Senate Committee, Canada needs to:

• Expand the Public Safety mandate of to include community reintegration support.

• Provide stable funding to support reintegration that involves the community.

CJI’s Stride program, delivered here in K-W, is an example of a successful and extremely costeffective program that specifically targets the needs of women; but its funding is uncertain.

For the cost of incarcerating one woman for one year — approximately $220,000 — Stride works with more than 50 highlytrained volunteers to build relationships with more than 260 women inside the prison walls and to provide circles of ongoing support in the community for women who are coming out. It’s one of the rare programs in Canada that provides a continuum of support by building relationships inside the prison and maintaining them after an inmate’s release.