By Martin F. Horn Even at their best, prisons are menacing environments. Bullying behavior is no stranger to high schools; we should not be surprised when it takes brutal shape in our prisons and jails. We call them gangs. Prisons and jails are environments of enforced scarcity. When we create this artificial scarcity we create an environment where an underground … [Read more...] about Why we need a radically different approach to prisons
gangs
Brazilian paradox: how gangs grow stronger in prisons
By Benjamin Lessing Este post está disponible en español y en portugués On January 4, the capital of Maranhão, Brazil, suffered a wave of coordinated attacks on busses and police stations, ordered by a local prison gang. The death of a 6-year-old girl in the attacks, along with evidence of the execrable conditions within Maranhão’s prisons, including a gruesome video of … [Read more...] about Brazilian paradox: how gangs grow stronger in prisons
What anti-violence program has a nearly 50 percent return on investment?
By Fabian Koss Post disponible en español Recently I had a Skype conversation with Alejandra Villafuerte, in preparation for our Jan. 31 Sports for Development Conference. She runs Save the Children International in La Paz, Bolivia. She told me the program is “saving numerous girls that were headed to joining violent gangs, and giving them a new outlook, and more … [Read more...] about What anti-violence program has a nearly 50 percent return on investment?