Dear Editor:
Only in Canada, eh? Only in a society that has gifted us with such necessary mind-bending economic generators as drive-thrus, big-box stores, Hummers, Boxing Day Weekend and more “stuff” for overflowing landfills, could we even contemplate prisons as economic drivers.
For all of the individuals, politicians, cities, municipalities and regional districts in the South Okanagan who are salivating at profiting from human adversity, I offer the following.
The world’s largest democracy, the United States, has more people in prison per capita than any other nation in the world.
Using the standard formula that Canada has 10 per cent of whatever the U.S. has, Canada is tarred by the same brush of revenge, punishment, judgement and fear in the name of social justice as the United States.
An extensive expose of Canada’s federal prison system, in the Jan. 22 Globe and Mail by feature writer Erin Andersen, notes that one in three prisoners have mental health problems. And to exacerbate this sad state, most of them have drug and or alcohol problems.
The main reason for this problem is the lack of will of provincial and federal governments to provide adequate levels of funding for prevention and treatment programmes for mental illness.
In this article the regional director of Ontario’s correctional ministry’s stated that “People in correctional facilities have some of the most severe mental illnesses you can possibly find, and their needs haven’t really been met.”
Solitary confinement, the most common punishment for many of these severely ill prisoners, is deemed to be cruel and inhumane by world justice organizations like Amnesty International.
Recent studies have shown that the federal governments myopic solution to their paranoia about crime and criminals, to create harsher laws and punishments, will create an increase in the number of prisoners and, thus, a need for more prisons; like one proposed for the Okanagan.
Can you see the conundrum here? Federal prisons are economic black holes.
When we add on the cost of those high paying staff jobs to the local economy, the operational costs cannot be justified, despite the lure of an increased tax base.
The Canadian taxpayer will still pay for these increased costs in the end, so to speak, and the funding to provide mental health services for potential and actual offenders will never materialize, a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs clearly shows that, until one’s basic needs of food, clothing, shelter, safety (this includes health supports) and belonging are met, one cannot begin to develop beyond the need to survive, cannot meaningfully contribute to society.
Consider then, if it will cost say $300 million to build a prison for 300 prisoners in the Okanagan, never mind operational costs, what could be done in B.C. and the Okanagan for those in our society who are daily in a survival mode?
What kind of healthy communities would result from supportive intervention as opposed to a punitive mentality for the less fortunate?
Look at the much bigger picture of how we want to be as individuals, a society and as a nation. A culture based on economic growth for growth’s sake, a culture that focuses on competition and self interest at the suffering of others, a culture that is punitive to those that are denied full equality and not compassionate to all, that focuses on hoarding and not sharing should not be surprised that “those who are denied the power of expression will express themselves in a drive for power.” (Jose Arguelles.)
Laurie Rockwell
Summerland
