Our May bulletin is out now
WHAT HAVE WE BEEN UP TO?
How violent is Britain?
We heard powerful and inspiring presentations on different forms of institutional, state and corporate violence at the How Violent is Britain? conference in Liverpool this month. Thank you to everyone who took part in the day. In the lead up to the event, we published a series of six comment pieces on our website (also listed below). Later in the year we are planning to publish more in our magazine, Criminal Justice Matters. You can check out how the event unfolded on this Storify of the twitter coverage.
Justice Matters in Criminal Justice Matters
The June issue of cjm 96 is now available. Guest edited by the Centre's deputy director, Will McMahon, the special focus is on Justice Matters, our three year initiative promoting the development of social alternatives to criminal justice interventions. The themed articles are available for free download. Articles in the topical and comment section (subscription only) include Ross Fergusson critiquing the criminalisation of children; Juanjo Medina and John Shute unpicking the government's gang strategy; Charmain Werren writing on the policing of public protests; Imran Awan and Sara Correia on terrorism and muslim communities; and Joe Sim remembering the great Stuart Hall, the highly influential cultural theorist, who died earlier this year. An edited version of Peter Squires' article on gun culture is available here.
At the sharp end of politics
Richard Garside, director, was quoted in an article in The Guardian on plans to introduce mandatory sentences for knife carrying. He said that promising tougher sentences had everything to do with politics and nothing to do with greater public safety. 'If you really want to stop young people from carrying knives,' he argues, 'you should talk to young people about why they carry them and maybe do something about the society they live in which encourages them to carry them.'
Little to lose, much to gain
Work has continued on the Justice Matters for Women initiative. Helen Mills and Rebecca Roberts of the Centre and Laurel Townhead of Women in Prison have drafted a 'call to action' with the help of a working group. The statement will be circulated shortly calling for action to challenge structural inequalities and eradicate punishment and control in women's lives. Rebecca has penned a short comment piece on this and the recent How Violent is Britain? conference, detailing the need for a bold and unapologetic agenda to bring about real change for women.
From here to utopia
Richard spoke at a recent People's Parliament event looking at criminal justice policy. A write up of his speech, in which he highlights the need for downsizing criminal justice, is available here. The next People's Parliament event will be exploring how activists can move beyond capitalism. The event webpage includes a striking video from Mary Griffiths Clarke and Rebecca Walker on 'Post-Capitalism Utopia'.
Richard was also interviewed by Russian Television on missing prisoners, the tagging of people who have died, and criminal justice privatisation.
Essay competition on criminal justice abolition
The Centre has partnered with the British Society of Criminology on an essay prize for PhD students. Entrants are being asked to submit an essay on what criminal justice institution, or what aspect of policy or practice, they would want to see abolished. The winning entry will be published in Criminal Justice Matters magazine. The winner will also receive a bursary to attend the British Society of Criminology conference and the preceding postgraduate event, including accommodation and food. The closing date for entries is Friday 20 June 2014 at 5pm. For details visit the competition page.
Bye bye
Jordan Beaumont, one of our interns from the University of Surrey, completed his placement with us this month. We'd like to thank him for the great contribution he has made over the last nine months and we wish him the best for the future. You can read what Jordan wrote for our website, on why we should stop referring to 'criminal justice', here.
HAVE YOU SEEN?
Getting away with murder?
Dr David Whyte of the University of Liverpool highlights the key themes from our recent conference, outlining the various and deadly activities of British companies. He writes, 'no company director sets out in the morning to intentionally kill workers. Yet directors do very often set out in the morning to make decisions that cut margins, intensify production conditions or cut back on working conditions. A more routine and premeditated form of violence than you get from cases of inter-personal violence. But the victims suffer deaths that are every bit as violent and painful.'
Frack off
Dr Will Jackson of Liverpool John Moores University writes about the 'out of control' policing of anti-fracking protestors at Barton Moss. He writes, 'there have been more than 200 arrests to date – including the detention of children, pregnant and elderly protesters, and the violent arrest of women – alongside many additional reports of police misconduct related to Greater Manchester Police’s management of the protest'.
Behind the wire
Dr Victoria Canning of Liverpool John Moores University writes about the violence of immigration detention and the asylum system. 'We need only scratch the surface of the asylum system in Britain to see that violence has become integral to the way we treat those seeking refuge. Detention without criminal charge, dispersal, destitution, and fear of deportation are central to the lives of those seeking asylum here.' We also published an article by Frances Webber on the role of children's charity Barnardo's in 'pre-departure detention'. Frances considers recent reports on the charity's partnership with G4S and concludes by arguing that 'Barnardo’s colludes with, legitimises and provides chintz curtains for a system of institutionalised disbelief, indifference and inhumanity – no matter how kindly it does its job'.
Also on our site this month, Dr David Stuckler (University of Oxford) and Dr Sarah Steele (Queen Mary, University of London), write about migrant acess to NHS services, arguing that dog-whistle immigration politics runs counter to the principles by which the National Health Service was originally established.
Much to do on stop and search
Professor Ben Bowling of King's College London gives a cautious welcome to the Home Secretary's proposals to reform stop and search. He credits Teresa May for her willingness to review the controversial police power but would like to see her go much further than she is currently offering to do.
Protecting children
Professor Barry Goldson of the University of Liverpool writes about the long shadow of persistent failure, misery, scandal, human suffering, abuse and violence in children's prisons. Also on our site, Paul Gavin of Kingston University, calls for the imprisonment of children to be replaced by educational provision and restorative justice. Rona Epstein of Coventry University argues that when it comes to balancing off the human rights of the child and the seriousness of the mother's offence the rights of the child should come first.
The war on terror
Dr Vicki Sentas (UNSW Australia) argues that the war on terror has generated a pattern of extrajudicial killings, rendition and torture.
Believe in change
Mike Guilfoyle, a former probation officer, argues that building trusting relationships with service users in probation takes time, effort, commitment and a shared belief in the change process.
TAKE A LOOK AT THIS
A little less conversation, a little more action please
Lady Edwina Grosvenor, in a piece on the Works for Freedom website, calls for the development of trauma-informed criminal justice practice.
Crime and war in Afghanistan
The editors of the British Journal of Criminology have awarded the Radzinowicz Prize to John Braithwaite and Ali Wardak for their two-part article, 'Crime and War in Afghanistan'. The prize is awarded annually for the article that, in the view of the Journal's editors, has most contributed to the development of criminology. Both parts of the article are currently free to download.
Poverty and punishment in austere times
The May Issue of the Prison Service Journal is now available to download free from the Centre's website. It includes a focus on improving services to prisoners to promote resettlement, and an article by Professor Joe Sim (Liverpool John Moores University) on poverty and punishment in austere times.
HOT DATES
On the margins
Professor Belinda Carpenter of Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, will present research on the coroners court system in Australia, in particular how it affects families of victims who are from overwhelmingly vulnerable and marginalised populations. Organised in partnership with Inquest, the event will be held on Tuesday 15 July 2014 at the Centre. For more information and to book visit the event page.
The challenges facing an incoming government
On Tuesday 23 September David Faulkner of the University of Oxford and a former senior civil servant will be discussing the criminal justice challenges facing the incoming government following the 2015 General Election. Drawing on his new book, Servant of the Crown, David will offer a rare insight into the inner workings of Whitehall, highlighting policy successes and failures and considering what the future may hold for criminal justice reform. For more information and to book, visit the event page.
Save the date: Alternatives to policing
We have fixed a date for a seminar on 'alternatives to policing' with Professor Tim Hope of the University of Salford and Waqas Tufail of the Northern Police Monitoring Project and University of Liverpool. The event will take place in London on Wednesday 22 October 2014. Information will follow in next month's bulletin.
IN THE NEWS
Latest signs of a renewed law and order auction
The law and order rhetoric appears to be heating up in advance of the 2015 General Election and following the killing of school teacher, Ann Maguire.
Tough on crime, tough on the unemployed
In a further sign of a punitive turn in employment policy, The Times reports that the long-term unemployed could soon find themselves working alongside those on court-ordered community punishments.
Poverty, not brain development, behind family problems
Patrick Butler, writing in The Guardian, questions claims that early childhood brain development is the main cause of later social problems. There is 'deep unease' among British researchers, he writes, over the 'use of neuroscience' and the related 'underplaying of poverty' to influence child protection policy.
Serco to be investigated over sex assault claim
News sources report that Serco is to be investigated by the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee. The investigation comes after the company was forced to disclose a secret internal report revealing evidence that it failed to investigate properly a claim of repeated sexual assaults by one of its staff against a female resident at Yarl's Wood immigration detention centre.
Catching more crooks than it employs?
Home Secretary, Theresa May, gave a speech to the Police Federation, listing a series of scandals that have made it 'a time of great difficulty for policing'.
NUMBERS OF THE MONTH
750 - the number of hours that people on forced volunteering placements would have to complete if they have been on the Work Programme for more than two years, under proposed changes to the 'Help to Work' scheme. The maximum those on a court-ordered community sentence can be expected to work unpaid is currently 300 hours.
20% - the alleged amount of crime allegations reported to the police that they have failed to record.
5 - the additional number of children that die each day in Britain, compared with Sweden, according to a study by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and the National Children's Bureau. Researchers cite poverty and suicide as among the factors.
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
'The prison service/government keep saying how important it is to maintain family ties. So they put phone prices up, send us miles away from our families and stop us from having stamps and writing materials posted in. My partner used to send them all in for me so we can all stay in touch as much as possible and that has now come to a sudden stop and now my daughter wants to know why her daddy can’t write to her anymore. "I know that if I lose my family because of this lack of contact, it will be straight back to square one and I know I will go straight back to crime as I’ll have nothing left to lose.'
A person in prison quoted by Politics.co.uk in a piece on changes to the Incentives and Earned Privileges Scheme.
This bulletin was compiled and edited by Rebecca Roberts. For comments and feedback email rebecca.roberts@crimeandjustice.org.uk.