Should Prisons Be Allowed In America

Research Paper
America’s prisons have a major importance in modern society. They are a huge contributing factor to the safety of our country and allow for proper and humane punishment for those who commit crimes. While America’s streets continue to be plagued by crime and dangerous people, prisons help significantly in decreasing the crime rate and removing those people from society in order to create a safer place for people to live. Although there are many pros that come with prisons, a handful of cons come with them as well, which allow for arguments to rise about whether prisons should be allowed in America or not. Prisons are a necessity in modern society that punishes and rehabilitates those who commit crimes with the purpose of protecting
As crime rates grow, so do the number of prisons that are used to control it. Timothy Williams stated, “Violent crime rose in the United Sates in 2012 for the first time in six years, led by an increase in major crimes in large cities” (Williams par.1). As crime grows in America, the danger of our cities does as well for most crimes occur in populated suburban areas. Williams said, “The largest increases took place in cities with populations of between 500,000 and one million people, where violent crime rose by 3.7 percent, including a 12.5 percent spike in murder rates” (Williams par. 2). Crimes that occur in areas of large populations are especially dangerous due to the fact that it puts a large amount of people in danger. The author also said, “The last year in which violent crime rose nationally was 2006, when the rate went up by 1.9 percent. Before that, from 1996 to 2005, violent crime had declined by 17.6 percent, according to the F.B.I figures” (Williams par. 6). Due to the large decrease of 17.6 percent in crime from 1996 to 2005, then to the rapid increase of 1.9 percent in crime in 2006, the data clearly shows that the U.S needs to put more prisons into the states so that the rising crime rates can be controlled. Adult men in prison are put into groups depending on the crime they were found guilty of and how dangerous they would be to the public if they escaped. There are four of these groups called security
These issues are having an effect on the government and U.S citizens. Overcrowding is among the most controversial issues in America’s prisons. Barden wrote, “Between 1979 and 1984, 126 new prisons were built in the United States. Yet these prisons have not met the demand for more prison space. By 1986 our prisons were operating at between 107 and 121 percent of capacity” (Barden 50). Overcrowding of prisons does not only affect the outside world, but also the prisoners inside due to increased violence resulting in many deaths. Barden said, “Prisons continue to be overcrowded to this day. In more than 40 states, courts have issued orders to reduce prison overcrowding. But the states have been slow to comply” (Barden 50). The reason for not taking action is due to the expenses that come with increasing prison space. Most states do not have the money to reduce overcrowding, especially after the recession. Violence is most likely the best known issue in prisons. The author stated, “In the old days, prisoners feared brutal guards. Now the fear permeating American prisons comes mostly from fellow convicts. Beatings, stabbings, and homosexual rapes are everyday occurrences” (Hjelemeland 52). Violence leads to deaths and suicides in many of America’s prisons which also affect those convicts’ families. Another fact Andy wrote was, “Overcrowding is a major factor in