In this book, Marie Gottschalk examines why the carceral state, with its growing number of outcasts, remains so tenacious in the United States. She analyzes the shortcomings of the two dominant penal reform strategies–one focused on addressing racial disparities, the other on seeking bipartisan, race-neutral solutions centered on reentry, justice reinvestment, and reducing recidivism. Gottschalk exposes the broader pathologies in American politics that are preventing the country from solving its most pressing problems. She concludes by sketching out a promising alternative path to begin dismantling the carceral state.
With an introduction by Lois Ahrens, Director of the Real Cost of Prisons Project
Co-sponsored by:
The Criminal Justice Program of Study, Research & Advocacy at HLS
Harvard Prison Legal Assistance Project
Prison Studies Project