From The Appeal:
Solitary confinement in prison is incredibly harmful. Those in favor argue that it reduces violence and keeps prison officials safe. Instead, research points strongly to the opposite conclusion: that solitary confinement worsens violence in prisons and the public. Indeed, when prisons use less isolation and expand rehabilitation programs, drug treatment, and mental health treatment programs, the rate of violence diminishes.
Even though the United Nations considers more than 15 days of solitary confinement a form of torture, American prisons use the practice liberally, often holding people in isolation for months or years at a time. Efforts to restrict the practice have faced roadblocks in recent years amid a conservative, tough-on-crime backlash following the 2020 George Floyd protests.
But isolating prisoners has not made America any safer. Most imprisoned people are eventually released back into the prison population—or sometimes right back into the public—after spending significant amounts of time in isolation. They often re-enter society more dangerous than they left after enduring psychological torture and losing the social skills needed to function in society. Continue reading >>>
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