ninehillsRAMBLE in the JUNGLE
Theory of Prison
By Wanaku Verdzekov · · The Cameroons
Tags: prisons, colonial-law, governance
The theory of prison is a colonial construct. After colonization (if and when that happens), decolonized people are supposed to revisit that theory, to make sure it actually solves the problem of crime in a given community.
Just riding the coat-tails of a British commissioner, or of a General Leclerc, is a recipe for dysfunction, which is the menu of government we have been experiencing since 1961.
What gives one human the right to put another human in custody? A copy of the French constitution? Orders in Council for British Southern Cameroons, signed by a dead queen?
If one takes a real, critical look at the instruments of governance in active use, it is obvious that their foundations were laid in foreign contexts whose objective was, and is, to EXPLOIT our people the best way they could.
Lesson: taking lessons in governance from colonizers is agreeing to, accepting, and aiding and abetting colonization in its new form: neo-colonization.
The subject is still open for useful debate. Redesigning governance is not rocket science.
TM
— Wanaku Verdzekov
Reading & grammar
Reading level: Gr 10–12
Understand
- Why does the author call prison a "colonial construct"?
- What question does the author ask about the right to put someone in custody?
- What lesson does the author draw?
Grammar focus: rhetorical questions with examples. "A copy of the French constitution? Orders in Council… signed by a dead queen?" Listing possible answers as questions shows how weak each one is.
Try it: Write a question followed by two rhetorical answer-questions about a school rule.
Discuss: Debate motion: "Communities should design their own justice systems instead of prisons."