SURVIVING IN PRISON
by Harold S. Long
Convicts don't live in prisons - they survive them. Harold S. Long has written a disturbing and deeply moving account of prison life. Long has been behind bars for over ten years. He describes how prisons are run: the penal code and the cellblock code. He takes you out to the yard and into the hole. He explains the complete failure of most "rehabilitation" programs. And he reveals what it is like to survive the isolation, humiliation, and brutality of prison life.
Here are some brief excerpts from this powerful book:
"The first and most important thing a prisoner must realize is that he is a meaningless body among hundreds of other meaningless bodies. No employee within an institution is going to stick his neck out for an inmate. It makes no difference if he is entangled in an injustice or gross misunderstanding."
"The black market has such items as radios, TVs, tapes, fans, street clothing, and an assortment of jewelry. Anything else you might need that can be commandeered from state supply rooms, such as stationery and office supplies, janitorial supplies such as laundry soap, furniture polish, or anything else they may stock, can be purchased for a relatively small fee. If the state uses it, it can be bought on the black market. Weapons, of course, are always available. They will be homemade knives constructed from a shaft or flat piece of steel, sharpened well enough to pass easily through skin and clothing. For those who prefer a blunt striking instrument, pipes may be purchased for a lesser fee, and in all major institutions, at least
a couple of inmates will be in the business of manufacturing weapons."
"In the free world, a man faced with.. provocation can get another job, find another place to socialize or pursue recreational interests, and in severe cases, relocate his place of residence. Even if none of these remedial actions are feasible, he can still find at least temporary sanctuary from the frustrations by simply going for a walk or a ride. In prison, there
are no such options."
"The constant and unending growth of the prison population has caused the by-product of double bunking in cells which were designed for single occupancy, thereby intensifying the already violent atmosphere. An area an inmate
once shared with 100 men must be shared with 150 or 200 men; more people, more personality traits, and an increased proximity of visual, auditory, and physical contact. With all the other stresses of prison living, the last thing an inmate needs is to have what he considers a detestable person within constant range of his everyday perception, and this is where interpersonal strife and hostilities begin, and where prison administrations fail to control the environment they have created."
"A staggering percentage of prisoners walk with an exaggerated swagger to project a tough guy image, comparable to a schoolyard bully. They talk loudly at inappropriate times, claim to have had material possessions that were obviously beyond their means, profess to have knowledge or experience with subjects they are incapable of comprehending, and are boisterous,
overbearing, inconsiderate, and live with a near total disregard for the rights and feelings of others, though less often deliberately than unconsciously. They are unable to discern what is and what is not appropriate behavior, and are unconcerned whether or not their conduct is disturbing the people in the immediate vicinity."
Chapters include:
l Power Structures
l The Prison Experience: Day One to Day Ninety
l Isolation and Segregation Units
l Programs and Recreation
l The Internal Litigation Process
l Interpersonal Aspects of Prison Life
l Our Present, Our future
l And More.
Surviving In Prison is much more than the story of how prisons
work and where they fail. It is the true account of one man's struggle to preserve some shred of dignity that he can use to build a new life.. if only he can survive.
1990, 8½ x 11, 128 pp, soft cover.
SURVIVING IN PRISON: $14.95
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