Some reforms that have been built around the promise of public interest are the prison institutions, businesses, political machines, and voting rights. Before their reformation, these systems were oppressing minority communities from thriving.
Before there was a prison system, citizens who chose not to follow the law were brutally punished. Then during the 1800s, the early stages of prison systems were developed. Unlawful citizens were thrown into a large cell to basically rot and die. Reformers began to observe that this system wasn’t working and started reforms a new system influenced by the principles of transcendentalism, an idealistic social movement developed in New England in 1836. These new principles lead to more of rehabilitating and educational programs that are still used for inmates to help them transition into a better way of living.
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Political machines obtained power through bribery and rewarding people who voted for them and caused corruption, poor service, racial tensions, and violence in local governments. During the Progress Era a wave of political reform and social activism began and political machines were removed causing various aspects of local government to change in favor of the public’s interest. Reformers politicians were now held more accountable to their community once they reached power when new voting rights were implemented. Minorities, women, and the poor were now able to have their voice heard through voting. By voting, the public’s interests were also heard concerning businesses as well. Companies and corporations were also held accountable for the treatment of their employees from the formation of unions by the people. Today we see that the treatment of employees has become prioritized by some businesses and the evolution of voting
Prison Litigation Reform Act (“PLRA”) generally requires a prisoner Plaintiff to exhaust administrative remedies before filing suit in federal court. Title 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a) provides that “[n]o action shall be brought with respect to prison conditions under § 1983 of this title, or any other Federal law by a prisoner confined in any jail, prison, or other correctional facility until such administrative remedies as are available are exhausted.” See also Moore v. Bennette, 517 F.3d 717, 725 (4th Cir. 2008). The Supreme Court has interpreted the language of this provision broadly, holding that the phrase “prison conditions” encompasses “all inmate suits about prison life, whether they involve general circumstances or particular episodes, and
Summary: The prison reform movement was a generally successful movement led by Dorothea Dix in the mid-1800’s. This movement sought to reform the poor conditions of prisons and establish separate hospitals for the mentally insane. In this article written by Dorothea Dix, directly addresses the general assembly of North Carolina, she explains the lack of care for the mentally insane and the necessary care for them. In the section regarding the jails, she talks about how the insane are locked up because they pose of a threat to the public’s safety not confined somewhere. Also, they are stationed in small cells chained up which is torturing them, and only the rich can afford to be sent to hospitals where they take much better care of.
Conflicts between workers and employers are prevalent to this day. From fair wages, to better working conditions, and even to appropriate healthcare, there is always some form of questioning that needs to be addressed. Dating back to the late 1800’s the economy and labor market of the United States underwent massive changes which mainly revolved around people of all different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds becoming wage laborers. Due to these previously unheard-of changes, a conflict between the employees and employers began. Therefore, in order to resolve labor issues, through great difficulty workers created unions and protested against their employers.
W. Craft offers a detailed explanation of his personal experiences while under slavery laws in the State of Georgia. His stories are personable and they also reflect the suffering his family bore throughout the years as slaves. Unlike a philosopher or a historian, Craft experienced first hand the aftermath of the slavery system in the United States. Through his own viewpoint, he described the various aspects of slavery and how he dealt with its issues throughout the years he lived under such regime. I had a moment of reflection when I read his explanation on how race and color had perhaps nothing to do with slavery.
The prison system has evolved over time now that the truth from the past has been exposed. What caused the prison to become brutal was from the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment. Before the approval of the amendment, many prisons considered the idea of rehabilitation, or allowing convicted criminals to work and rebuild themselves into better people and citizens, but many believed that prisoners should be punished. When the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery, it only ceased chattel slavery. Slavery was legal only for punishment purposes in prison.
Beginning in the late 19th Century, the Gilded Age was a historic period of time characterized by political corruption and angry sentiment towards government. As citizens of the United States became increasingly discontent about the current state of the nation, they started to express this anger in the form of reform movements. Leading up to the Progressive Era movements were various social, economic, and political concerns that revolved around political leaders failing to meet the needs of people. The rise of the Progressive Reform movements in the years 1870-1917 was largely influenced by conflict in the working class, governmental influence of big business, and the absence of civil rights for many American citizens.
was built in Fremantle, Western Australia, between 1851 and 1859 using convict labour. Royal Commissions in 1898 and 1911 instigated some prison reforms, but after World War II, significant reforms lagged behind those occurring elsewhere in Australia and the world. Improvements in the late 1960s and early 1970s included an officer training school, social workers, welfare officers, and work release and community service programs. Punishments varied over the years, with flogging and leg irons eventually replaced by lengthening of sentences and restriction from visitors or entertainment. More than 40 hangings were carried out at Fremantle Prison, which was Western Australia's only lawful place of execution between 1888 and 1984.
After the movement, however, interest groups started to form a centralized role. “ The Progressive electoral reforms increasingly allowed a variety of middle-class and professional interests to be represented outside of the party system.” (Knott & Miller, 1987, p. 81) The effects of this can still be felt today with voter turnout significantly decreased and an increase in split ticket voting. (Knott & Miller, 1987, p. 81)
By the late nineteenth century it became clear that the ideology of penal reform that had held together the framework of the penitentiary was dissolving. Progressive reformers realized the values and strategies that once were effective in battling the tumultuous effect of urbanization, industrialization, and mass immigration to be ineffective. The theories proposed by psychologist Sigmund Freud and naturalist Charles Darwin launched a new conversation in the reform community. Reformers such as Brockway turned to this new “scientific knowledge” in order to combat the crumbling notions of reform, pushing progressive strategies to focus on the nature of the offender, rather then the offence (Blomberg & Lucken, 2010, pp.61-71).
The Progressive era was widespread social activism and political reform from 1890-1920. . This was to help stop problems caused by corruption in the goverment. They wanted senators be elected was only if chosen by state legislates but the only way senators could be elected was if they were elected by citizens. This movement pointed out political machines and bosses. Progressives soon realized that improving conditions for the poor required broader political efforts at both the state and federal levels.”
Transcendentalists were Americans that believed everyone should be treated equally, so they began six major reform movements. There were many Transcendentalist movements, but the six most important reforms were the prison movement, women’s rights, anti-slavery, temperance, insane and education movement. The prison reform movement was started by the Transcendentalists because they felt that the system was wrong unfair and cruel. All prisoners suffered the same consequences regardless of his or her crime.
V. PRISON REFORMS The main part of this research paper is the reforms for the conditions of prison and make prison a better place for prisoner and make an alternative for incarceration. The prison Reform for prevention of overcrowding in prisons: A ten-point method for reducing the overcrowding in the prisons all over the world, these points are1: 1. Collect and use data to inform a rational, humane and cost-effective use of prison.
A two-year study conducted in Seattle, 819 female victims of sexual assault, were interviewed about their history of psychiatric disorders. The study found that over 10% of these women diagnosed schizophrenia disorders, and an additional 6 percent diagnosed with bipolar disorder or severe depression, were more likely to have been sexually assaulted by a stranger, attacked by multiple assailants, and severely injured during the attacks. These same women were also more likely to have been homeless or to have spent time in jail than those without mental illness. The author concluded that “sexual assaults in women with a major psychiatric diagnosis are common” and “more violent” compared to women without such diagnoses (Eckert, 2002). In Baltimore, data on physical and sexual abuse collected for one year
During the progressive Era, the politics of America went through reforms caused by different abuses in the political systems of the Industrial age. With the rise of the Industrial age, came a rise of new system abuses such as political bosses, which led to political reforms. One of the main problems that led to political reforms were political bosses, the main type of political abuse system created by the Industrial Revolution. With the Industrial Revolution, immigrants and other people massively flocked to cities in search of new jobs created by the Industrial Revolution. Political bosses used abused these large numbers, by rewarding supporters with jobs and kickbacks, in trade for votes.
Prisons in the 1840s were tough and gross. The crime rate went from 5,000 a year in 1800 to 20,000 in 1840. The punishments could be execution or they could be sent to Australia, America, or Tasmania. During the 1940s, prisons were nasty and unhealthy.