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by Liz Glamour |
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To counter this silence, a number of independent film and videomakers have produced compelling works on prisoners and the politics of prisons. Their works point to the complexities of power at work in the ways we define and punish crimes and show the repercussions of those social concenses. "Lockdown USA," produced by Deep Dish Network , is a compilation of material from their upcoming four-part series on the business of crime and justice in the United States. Edited from footage from activists and filmmakers across the country, it points to the operations of the prison industry and the criminal justice system as institutionalized forms of oppression for the already disenfranchised and discusses the repercussions that those operations have for society as a whole. Pointing out that the majority of inmates are incarcerated for non-violent drug offenses, it is especially critical of the lack of educational opportunities in prison and of the ways in which prisons have gone from ostensibly being rehabilitative to blatantly being mere warehouses for society's undesirables. Although some prison activists claim that all prisoners are "political", there are a number of prisoners whose incarceration is directly linked to specifically political acts or beliefs. "Framing the Panthers in Black and White," a thirty minute film by Chris Bratton and Annie Goldson, discusses the effect that the FBI's infamous COINTELPRO program had on the Black Panther Party and documents the trumped up charges and blatant framings that left many Panthers dead or in jail. "Geronimo Pratt", "Have You Seen La Nueva Mujer Revolucionaria Puertoriquena?", and "Resistance Conspiracy" — all by California video artist Lisa Rudman — document some of the political prisoners who still languish in prison, reminding us not to forget the relevance of their struggles. Media artists are also taking a critical look at conditions in prison and the ways in which new technologies have shaped the possibilities for controlling inmates once they have been incarcerated. "Mistreating Prisoners: Health Care Behind Bars," by Women in the Director's Chair, charges that prisoners receive abysmal health care because they are seen as expendable, and documents how the AIDS crisis in prison is growing because corrections officials refuse to acknowledge that people are having sex in prison. "Exploring Alternatives to Prison and Probation," by Jeffrey Tuchman looks at alternative sentencing programs such as a house arrest program where offenders are monitored by a non-removable electronic surveillance bracelet. "The New Gulag," by Kari Mokko , takes us into today's most modern prisons, condemned by groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch for such conditions as permanent "lock-downs" and bunker-like cells where prisoners are crowded together for up to 23 hours a day.
As the "war on crime" tries to justify the money diverted from social services into the new prison economy, it is important for us all to challenge ourselves in how we define crime, how we look upon those people society considers criminals, and whether we believe that prisons should be a rehabilitative force in the lives of those they house or should merely warehouse them forever in bleaker and more desperate conditions. These films are great resources for anyone who wants to become more familiar with not only the issues confronting prison activists but the good work that media makers have put forth in order to contribute to a real critical debate on these issues. </end>
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