Much has been written about the alarmingly high numbers of aboriginal Canadians who spend time in our jails and penitentiaries. Hundreds of thousands of pages of texts, court decisions, reports and inquiries have been published about why so many indigenous Canadians end up in custody, and what happens to them once they are there. In […]
Prisoners and Work
January 5, 2016 By Linda McKay-Panos
Several years ago, the Alberta government and other provincial governments considered the introduction of Alabama-style chain gangs as a form of employment for prisoners. This action reflected a North American trend towards making the prison experience harsher, with the view that this would discourage criminal behaviour. Currently, while there would no doubt be near-universal support […]
Solitary Confinement
January 5, 2016 By Juliana Ho
On July 17, 2015, Globe and Mail reporter Sean Fine wrote an article about Christopher Brazeau, a 34-year-old prisoner at Edmonton Institution, who is currently serving a 12-year prison sentence. Brazeau became the focus of media attention this past summer for being at the centre of a class-action lawsuit that “alleges Canada’s use of solitary […]
