Social Problem
This article looks at the failure of support that incarcerated mothers receive in order to try and save family ties. Women who are incarcerated result in their child or children being taken into the care of the foster system. This system is meant to deal with children who need temporary care, but in this case is being used for children who need to be cared for long periods of time—specifically, more than a couple years. Because of the extended period of time that these children are in the system the two goals of foster care are being failed; reunification and permanency. Women who are incarcerated struggle to meet the steps of the system because they are not provided the resources they need in order to accomplish the steps. Case
…show more content…
They are thrown into a category with all other parents who have had their child or children placed in the foster care system for reasons other that incarceration. This article shows shows how incarcerated mothers are expected to be able to achieve the same steps to rehabilitation as ‘free’ mothers—which is unrealistic. The time frame used is also unfair to incarcerated mothers because sentencing times are often longer then the system is set up for. Parents are required to attend court dates that are twelve months apart from each other and within these twelve months the mother is expected to be able to care for the child or children otherwise her rights as a parent will be terminated. Realistically, a mother that is incarcerated will not be able to have everything sorted within twelve months; therefore, a system other than the foster care systems needs to be put in place for this type of …show more content…
In order to solve this issue, a new system for long term care must be created. People who take on responsibility of the child will be required to care for them until incarcerated mothers, or fathers, are released from jail. At this point the caregiver will have to give up all parental rights they have assumed over the year of the parent being in prison. During the time of providing care for the child, caregiver will be required to take the child weekly to visit with the incarcerated parent. Maintaining contact with biological parents is essential in keeping a bond between the child and parent thus the care system must provide the means for this to happen. The role of the caregiver is made clear at the time they receives the child and that it is a temporary arrangement with the intent of rehabilitation between the parent and child being the terminal
Through previous studies conducted, the findings “reflect both insufficiencies in the foster care system and in insufficiencies in parenting and education youth bring into foster care (Scannapieco et al., 2007, pg 425).” As a result of children being placed in care most of their childhood, the findings of the empirical research must be viewed with caution. Such findings included that teens in fact have “significant difficulties transitioning into independent living and self sufficiency (Scannapieco et al., 2007, pg 425).” When it comes to education, compared to that of their peers, youth in foster care are drastically behind. A small percentage of youth exit foster care having just graduated from high school.
Foster care is one of the oldest social systems, its official implementation dating back to 1909, when the federal government officially suggested that foster homes were the best way to care for children, as opposed to the former system of orphanages and orphan trains. Foster care began as a voluntary way for parents to ensure their children could live a better life, but has since become a largely involuntary way to remove a child from a potentially dangerous situation (Rosenfield et al., 1997). Social workers predate this system, first appearing within the first Charity Organization as “friendly visitors” in 1877 (Segal, 2020). Social workers and foster care have long been intertwined, but social policy dictates much of what the foster care
The article ties the two main focus’ together to show how a child’s internal behavior such as depression, anxiety, withdrawn self-esteem; and external behaviors such as incarceration, pregnancy, homelessness, substance abuse, defiance, and running away can be greatly altered based on how he or she is treated in a foster home (Orme & Buehler, 2001). Introduction
Laura Finley states, “Indeed, restoration of the family is achieved in over half the cases of foster care, according to federal statistics. Where this is not possible, permanent adoption is the goal with about twenty percent of foster children. Other children are simply waiting until emancipation…” (Jacobs and Finley). The issue with this view on the foster care system is that its completely sugar coated.
Summary Lynn S. Urban and Barb Burton conducted a case-study (2015) investigating the effect of parenting training on incarcerated women within a three year period. Studies showed that there was a negative impact on children if their parents were incarcerated, so a case study was done to increase the connection between parent and child. The goal of the case study was to stop the cycle of incarceration and bad parenting habits or styles within families. The program was conducted at the Chillicothe Correctional Center with the member of the PATCH program.
The article “Jail Is Sinking Families into Poverty, and Women Pay the Most” discusses the situation of Carla Gonzales, who is a part of a study of 300 families who are dealing with the crippling debt associated with their loved ones’ criminal convictions and incarcerations, and her family after the incarceration of her brother. Many of these families, especially the women, go into extreme debt trying to pay for lawyer fees, court fees, costs of prison visitations, and basic necessities (commissary items and phone calls) for the individual incarcerated. This debt also affects inmates after they are released as they often rely on their families, who are themselves sometimes evicted or denied housing, to find work and housing. Alicia Walters,
However, these important needs in a child’s development are at stake when parents or caretakers are unable or unwilling to take care of their child or when parents fall into an abusive behavior towards their children. When a child is found in this situation, he should be placed in a new home. Foster care is the system that states, including Texas and its counties, rely on to place children that are experiencing difficult or dangerous conditions. However, even though foster care is the most common solution to provide physical protection to children living in an abusive atmosphere, the instability because of
Despite the dark light put on the foster care system, it is clear that the Foster Care Bill of Rights is necessary in order to ensure the childrens? safety and inform them of the rights that they have. It is guaranteed that the children within the system have already had a difficult life thus far, so they must be cared for as much as possible. Even though it is unavoidable that the child will struggle with their own mental difficulties, this act does the best work possible to help the children through this tough journey. Foster care has a bad reputation due to the abuse
Common misconceptions associated with being in foster care portray youth in the system as orphans. Youth in foster care are supposedly delinquents, and will perform poorly in academics compared to their peers who are not placed in these institutions. In society, these stereotypes are often pretended, but very little people understand the circumstances and factors the youth in the foster care system are facing. Youth in care are often juxtaposed to their community counterparts, to signify the impact of being a ward of the state, rather than being with a family member.
Who claimed that she was an unfit mother because she was only 17 years old when she had given birth. “I don’t know how one could fully heal from that trauma,” “said the woman, now 41”(Press, T. C. (2022, September 21). Therefore it is very evident that even still today our foster care system is extremely
This book raised awareness to authorities on the kind of treatment happening and proposed a change for foster institutions and homes to be monitored. The story began by Ms. Rita, Jennings’s mom, walking Jennings to an orphanage called Home of the Angels. My initial reactions after reading the first chapter was how a mother could just leave her kid with anybody. The book immediately gained my
Children need to feel secure and loved and need supervision and guidance. If a parent cannot be present to care for and look after their children, it can cause the child to feel afraid and they may act out or behave in ways that they would not if the parent were living with them. Several studies have found that a significant number of children of incarcerated parents struggle with a variety of childhood problems that have long term implications for adult adjustment (Kjellstrand, 2012). Even if children visit parents in while they are incarcerated, the physical and emotional distance can become a strain on their relationship. I think more should be done to encourage courts to take families into consideration in sentencing and correctional facilities should have better resources for incarcerated parents to maintain healthy relationships with their children.
Foster parents can also play a vital role in supporting reunification by providing a stable environment for the child during the transition period. Policymakers need to allocate more resources toward improving the foster care system. This includes increasing funding for social workers and providing better training programs for caseworkers. Increasing successful rates of reunification in foster care with biological families requires a collaborative effort from all stakeholders involved in the process. Providing comprehensive support services to parents, improving communication between caseworkers and families, encouraging regular visitation between children and their parents, fostering stable environments through foster
I am a first-generation college student who aged out of the foster care system. My formative experiences in foster care led me the profession of social work. I earned a BSW (San José State University) and MSW (University of Michigan) with a specialization in social policy and evaluation in the practice area of children and youth in families. During my second year of my MSW studies, I was invited to speak at the White House bill-signing ceremony of the Foster Care Independence Act (FCIA), based on my advocacy work to reform the foster care system. This invitation led to an MSW field practicum at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where I worked on the implementation of the FCIA.
Granting children, the right to visit their incarcerated mothers is a contentious topic with both sides having strong claims and counterclaims. Terrance Bogans does an outstanding job in his essay, “Being Mommy Behind Bars: The Psychological Benefits of Child Visitation with Incarcerated Mothers” addressing why children should be allowed to visit their incarcerated mothers, citing many reasons and using many argumentative components. Bogans has an explicit thesis in the conclusion “Child visitation must be increased in order to alleviate the psychological strains that take place during incarceration” (15). Bogans uses this clearly stated thesis to tell his main point and to address his opposition. The author’s purpose is to convince readers that children and incarcerated mothers have a right to see each other and no one should stop that.