Choosing a debate topic: exploring depth and breadth in argumentation

¶ … prison gang is a select group of inmates with an organized chain of command and an established code of conduct. They operate in secrecy with a view to controlling their prison environment through intimidation and violence meted on non-members. Some of the oldest prison gangs in the U.S. were formed as early as 1950s. Some notable example is Gypsy Jokers that operated in Washington State prisons (Fleisher & Decker, 2001). Violence in correctional facilities in the United States is something that has been with us for quite a while. Prisoners and prison officers have both fallen victims to this violence.

Think of the San Antonio, Texas incident where 281 prisoners were stabbed and 13 slain (The Ledger, 1984). There was divided opinion on what motivated such heinous acts with some prison officials opining that prison gangs who were divided along racial lines were responsible. Some attacks were thought to be instigated by inmates who used coffee as the currency. Inmates in penitentiary institutions become members of prison gangs where they participate in gang activities. The rise of prison gangs should be blamed on America's criminal justice system and more specifically on individual State Correction Department.

It may appear far-fetched, but it is probable that gang leaders are most certainly gang members. The prison authorities should take an initiative and isolate gang members from non-gang prison population. This can in a way contain the influence of the gang members within the prison facility. The prison authorities can set aside separate housing units for gang members. It is only unfortunate that the idea of segregation has failed in certain states that have tried to implement it like California where California Department of Correction intentionally segregated new inmates by race to know whether inmates were racial extremists. Criminal justice system enhances the emergence and growth in membership of prison gangs in prison facilities. It is most certain that the criminal justice system has the necessary machinery to enable them know if an offender is a gang member or not long before they are incarcerated because the pre-sentence investigation report usually has this information. Moreover, local and state police state data can be used to ascertain this.

As a matter of fact, most prosecutors are always aware of a suspect's involvement with gang activities. Police officers, by merely looking at the tattoos donned by suspects know the specific gang group a suspect is affiliated to (Knox, 2005). Somebody is most certainly sleeping on the job because these valuable pieces of information can be used to arrest the escalating heinous activities of prison gangs. Prison authorities can also transfer gang leaders to far away correctional facilities to stem their influence and deter many people from visiting them. Opponents of this initiative may want to ague that not so many states may have sufficient geographical dispersion of institutional facilities. Can't these states make use of Interstate Compact law to facilitate sending of prison gang leaders to other states?

Department of Correctional services can impose severe restrictions on gang members or even suspend privileges they enjoy to instill discipline. Prison authorities can use level management system where restriction of privileges is imposed and threats of severe punishments issued. Members of prison gangs who conduct themselves with decorum stand to enjoy higher set of privileges under such system. Many prison facilities have this in place including stopping gang mails. Some have even abolished gang colors behind bars. The question is 'are these really enforced' because it is in these same prisons where incidences of gang related prison deaths are reported. Security concerns are not addressed in these facilities regardless of the fact that there are people trained and paid to do that. Department of Correctional Services has the capacity to put in place an information system which can help them in gathering intelligence. This can help them track and monitor the gangs. The intelligence gathered can be availed to different personnel. This information can be used to curtail gang conflicts (Knox, 2005). Monitoring of inmates affiliated to certain gangs makes the prison authorities know who they are talking to and know the kind of tattoos they wear. The gang members will also feel intimidated when they realize that the prison authorities know about their under dealings. Prison authorities are, however, not making the most out of the information they receive pertaining to the activities of gang members.

Gangs behind bars are left by prison officers to do whatever they wish. This is why they fight with and manufacture improvised weapons. Gangs make prison corridors an extension of the streets where they battle over tuff and drug territory. Because of security lapses, these gangs make lethal improvised weapons behind the bars which are used to threaten and carry out violence. It is mind boggling how authorities would allow religious organizations whose activities influence manufacture of improvised weapons behind bars to continue operating within the prisons (Fleisher & Decker, 2001). Facilities exposed to the religious organizations like World Church of Creator (WCOTC) tend to have two-fold increase in weapons production. In fact, correctional facilities that have access to their literature have a weapon production problem of over 70% (Knox, 2005). It is worrying to know that with the full knowledge that religion plays a pivotal role in emergence of prison gangs, prison officers only physically man half of prison religious services. It is more likely that these unmanned religious services are used to indoctrinate members. These religious groups also conduct bizarre behaviors like saluting, marching, and cadence in full glare of prison officers.

I blame individual State Department of Correctional services for the emergence and growth of prison gangs because they have failed to realize that inmates just like any other human beings need social identity and belonging and this is probably why they import outside gang structures, names, and symbols into prisons (Fleisher & Decker, 2001). It never seem to occur to prison officers that it is only natural for these inmates to form groups based on need for identity, belonging, and personal interests. In fact, ethnicity conform to well-known processes in human groups. When they suppress human tendencies to form social groups, they will only worsen the situation.

Prison officers also violate inmates' civil rights by failing to reprimand those who physically assault them. Inmates faced with such situations will most likely form cliques that guarantee their physical safety. Prison authorities are more concerned with stemming out prison gang menace at the expense of what may be the issue behind them. Until issues pertaining to violation of inmates by their fellow inmates and addiction are addressed gang activities in prisons will most likely stay with us for ages (Fleisher & Decker, 2001).

A share of blame must be apportioned to courts that time and again adjust prison environment. The capabilities of prison officers to control gangs operating within the prisons have severely been hampered by the courts. Prison administrators have been confined within the limits of the case laws. Prison administrators are forced to develop gang control strategies that conform to federal court precedents. Such precedents have made it absolutely difficult to segregate inmates even if they are known to be having gang affiliations (Fleisher & Decker, 2001).