Introduction to Women's Imprisonment

Catalog description

This class will explore the history, sociology, law, and politics of women’s incarceration in the United States and Louisiana in particular exploring how different disciplines approach the subject. The class will investigate and map the work of local, national, and international organizations working on issues related to women in prison. We will use women in prison as a location to explore gender issues such as violence against women, discrimination against women in employment, racism and intersectionality, devaluation of women, and enforcement of gender norms such as compulsory heterosexuality. We will examine how law oppresses women but also how individuals and groups have changed policies to improve women’s prison conditions and reduce the collateral consequences of convictions.