My Prison Experience!
Firstly, I'll start off by saying that I've never been labeled an inmate, i have no convictions nor felonies. When I were 18, I decided that I would become a correctional officer. At 18 I was placed as an officer of a cell block in a level 3 security prison for the South Carolina Department of Corrections. This level 3 prison wasn't like your maximum security prisons seen on television, the prison was open bay like a military boot camp. The vast majority of inmates were in prison for robbery, drugs, domestic abuse, and s*x offender. There were rare cases of murderers. 12-hour shifts, with me being the only officer and approximately 70-100 inmates. This is when I considered myself as a Part-time inmate. They shared stories and I listened. Ages ranged from 18-70 they all had stories and the majority had children. With the particular institution being 92-93% black many of the guys older and younger look to me as a mentor because or big brother because I didn't just label them as inmate. I knew there names and would call them by there names. When the majority of the staff simply called them "inmate" and nothing more. "Inmate pick up this trash" "Inmate go clean the toilet" Inmate, inmate, inmate. The inmates would often ask me "why are you here, or say this isn't a job for you, you care about people. You should be in school." And in all honesty I didn't really know why was there at the time but nevertheless I was there. And I began helping individuals with math and offering possible solutions to problems unawaringly. Walking the cells from 6pm-6am i was a part-time inmate because like them I was locked in the institution until my relief came only difference was they were locked in until there time was up. I posted a blog yesterday titled "The purpose of prisons!" During my short time working with in the Correctional System that inmates were more apt to change there way of thinking and actions when someone listened to them, understood that what they did was wrong, and was willing to offer guidance. At the time I didn't know why I was a Correctional Officer, but now I do.
I am honestly scared of anything JAIL like, lol. Ive heard stories of what its like.. and "you never want to go there" blah blah blah.. but I dont think I could ever go in a jail.. and actually work. I feel those people probably do have a lot to say, and are sadly going to be labeled by that one mistake that landed them there. I think we need more.. men? and maybe females.. (BRAVE ONES) to go into jails/prisons and talk to these people about life in jail, getting out of jail, what to do with the remainder of the time they have left and so on and so forth..Everyone truly deserves a second chance.. and if they themselves want it bad enough, they will do right by it.