Preparing the community to reintegrate the prisoner – We are all responsible for one another
presented by Avraham Hoffmann at the ICPA 17th annual conference, Melbourne, Australia, October 2015
The processes of preparing prisoners, in prison, toward their release have improved significantly over the years. I covered this process in my last year’s presentation at the ICPA conference. However, the society has been slow in absorbing the changes related to the rehabilitation of released prisoner. Moreover, what value does preparing the prisoner in prison and the huge amount of invested efforts have if as he returns to the community there is no continuity and the community turns its back?
We may say that for years the issues of prisoner rehabilitation in the community and the community’s attitude toward released prisoners have been way behind the developments in the democratic societies. Even democratic countries fall behind in implementing the democratic system toward those who have committed an offence toward an individual or society.
A community that does not integrate released prisoners, is actually preventing them from rehabilitating. Only when we work at preparing the community to integrate the prisoners, are the activities preparing the prisoners for their release worthwhile.
What problems does a prisoner leaving prison face?
In addition to the problems caused by his past criminal activities and friends, the released prisoner faces problems due to being disconnected from society for a long period of time. Like a pain killer, prison numbs the problems the prisoner had left outside prison and, as he leaves prison he must deal with all of them at once.
Moreover in today’s society, changes are occurring at an extremely fast pace, faster than ever before. Therefore a released prisoner encounters many changes when he leaves prison. He may feel he has lost his anchors.
So, what can be done?
“We are all responsible for one another” is a Jewish principle of mutual aid and shared responsibility. It underlies the belief that without the community’s help and openness, even the best rehabilitation program will fail.
Hence, at the Prisoner Rehabilitation Authority (PRA) we decided to take action at the community level, to change the attitudes of society and to develop a society that is able and willing to absorb released prisoners. We have done so at 2 levels: the professional (the agencies) and the social (perception).
At the professional level we integrated social workers from the community, in preparing the rehabilitation programs in prisons, as well as representatives of the different community agencies to develop the rehabilitation program for the released prisoners, while they are still incarcerated. It realises in 2 ways: preparing the rehabilitation program and people from the community participating in the prison courses preparing prisoners toward their release. They include representatives of the PRA, the Social Services Agency, the Employment Bureau, the National Insurance Institution, the Ministry of Housing and the Police.
Obviously the Prison Services’ social workers could teach the different agencies’ policies. But the fact that representatives of the different community agencies come to prison to present their agencies’ regulations has a manifold impact and advantages on the prisoners, on the community representatives who support their rehabilitation and finally on the community at large.
But shouldn’t the prisoners, as well, commit themselves to rehabilitate?
Obviously the prisoners themselves should be committed to their own rehabilitation and integration. During the period preceding their release the prisoners are anxious and confused in regard to their future. It seems that these characteristics of their situation may increase their willingness to co-operate in planning an individual rehabilitation program, which will help them keep their commitment to rehabilitate when things get tough. For these two reasons – the willingness to participate in a rehabilitation program and the PRA’s presence as representative of the “outside” world – the PRA starts working in prison 90 days before the prisoner’s released. This early preparation enables the examination of alternative rehabilitation programs.
This individual rehabilitation plan is called the “Contact program” – which is a therapeutic contract that stipulates its conditions. The Authority’s law (1983) stipulates that the PRA will set the rules for the rehabilitation of prisoners. This program establishes the procedures by which the parole committee refers a prisoner to the different rehabilitation programs and community services. According to the “Contact” program the PRA is committed and responsible for the application of this therapeutic contract, in which the prisoner commits himself to participate in a community predefined therapeutic program, after his release from prison.
Why prepare the community services?
In the past even social workers outside prison had little knowledge about the ways to deal with a released prisoner. The social workers feared the prisoners because of their image as dangerous persons. The prisoners interpreted this fear as a weakness. As a result, they did not accept the social workers as people that could help them.
To change this situation the PRA together with the social welfare agencies worked at changing attitudes among professionals. Seminars were given to social workers. In some of them released prisoners and their spouses were present to promote the social workers awareness.
In most cities a joint team is dealing with released prisoners. These teams are composed of the different authorities and agencies’ local representatives: The PRA, the Social Services Agency, the Employment Bureau, the National Insurance Institution, the Ministry of Housing and the Police. These teams prepare a comprehensive rehabilitation program for released prisoners that return to their community. The fact that the program is agreed upon by all the concerned agencies and in co-ordination with the PRA, prevents manipulation of and by the released prisoners. In the past these manipulations have caused the programs to fail. In many towns, voluntary associations supervised by the PRA, send members to visit prisoners in prison and serve as a person they can turn to for help after their release.
Moreover, the PRA counsellor has an advantage over the probation officer, by the fact that his office is situated in each local Social Services Bureau and is a part of these services. It serves to stop the isolation of the released prisoner within the treatment services and allows offering him a comprehensive range of services.
Police
The police’s attitude has weighty importance in the released prisoner’s chances to rehabilitate. The PRA has attained a series of agreements with the police to ease the released prisoner’s reintegration into society. Among the decisions are: Minimising police interrogations during the prisoner’s working hours; The PRA’s authorisation to receive police information about the involvement or non-involvement of a prisoner in criminal activities; The PRA’s explanatory activities among policemen and the involvement of law enforcement representatives in the PRA’s activities such as seminars for social workers and prisoners’ pre-release courses.
But, are the professionals enough?
However, the agencies are not sufficient in themselves. There is a crucial need for cooperation between the different agencies and, for an adequate positive public atmosphere and attitude toward prisoners’ rehabilitation, to achieve a successful and lasting rehabilitation.
Similarly, a positive public attitude strengthens the professionals, while a negative public attitude weakens them.
No matter how brilliant the therapy is, if the community is not ready to offer social help, does not accept to employ the prisoners, or live near them, any effort of the professionals will be for nothing. At the same time, the volunteers lack the required professional knowledge without which he will most likely fail. Therefore, any rehabilitation of prisoners must be composed of the joint efforts and co-ordination between the professional practitioners and the community. Hence the Authority developed programs for the rehabilitation of released prisoners and their families that include the community at different degrees of involvement:
The Authority’s Residential hostels – halfway houses – are situated in residential neighbourhoods. Some programs integrate released prisoners in small communities, such as Kibbutz (rural settlements)[1] or Yeshiva, the Jewish theological seminars[2].
The 3-in-1 Apartment is a special program where 2 university students are paired with a released prisoner. They live together in an apartment during their studies and stay in touch for many years after. Moreover, the students become advocates of prisoners’ rehabilitation even after they leave the program, in their workplaces or neighbourhoods. Hence, opening new doors for released prisoners.
In an additional program, former released prisoners that are successfully rehabilitated, help newly released prisoners. They act as strengthening agents for the newly released prisoners, based on the theory of self-help groups. This program also helps the veterans, who by helping others, their own rehabilitation is strengthened.
Why should we prepare the family?
The family and its internal relationships can play a central role either by supporting the of the prisoner’s rehabilitation or as a risk factor that pushes him back to crime. And, at the same time the prisoner’s state has a major impact on his family – spouse and children. Hence a family that is able to support the prisoner will increases significantly his chances to successfully rehabilitate.
The prisoners’ wives
About 50% of the male prisoners in Israel are family men, hence the importance to treat and support their wives during their incarceration. These women participate in support groups for prisoners’ wives. They also participate with their husbands in in-prison courses preparing them for the release from prison, where they deal with personal issues and suppressed problems to prevent failures when the family takes its first steps after the release.
The prisoner’s children
There is a twofold reason for treating the children: To help these children that present a high risk group, both because of the absence of one of their parents and because of the stigma caused by the parent’s incarceration. Moreover, prisoners worry that they won’t be able to reconnect with their children after the release from prison. By providing a special program for their children that includes regular visits to the parent in prison, we increase the prisoner’s motivation to rehabilitate.
The program’s objective is to help the children deal with their difficulties, including at school, and encourage them to maintain a contact with their incarcerated father.
How can released prisoners find work?
We define rehabilitation as integration into the law-abiding society. The absorption into the work world is one of the major assessments to the rehabilitation’s success. Many efforts are made in the field of released prisoners’ rehabilitation, in their detoxification from drugs, in emotional therapy, and in family therapy, but without any solution in the employment field, any investment may be for nothing. A lack and failure in employment are one of the major factors for going back to crime and consequently to prison.
Because, many released prisoners lack stability in employment and have difficulties in accepting authority, the PRA has developed an employment support program that offers a prompt response to the released prisoners problems as an employee through therapy. In co-operation with the employment bureau released prisoners participate in vocational training to better their chances of finding a suitable work position. They receive the assistance of a social worker that follows up the progress, intervenes when necessary, and helps finding a job and keeping it.
To amplify the chances of success, the PRA employment co-ordinators work at finding “friendly employers” who are willing to employ released prisoners and co-operate with the PRA employment co-ordinator.
And what about the community itself?
Volunteers from the community are invaluable to the rehabilitation of released prisoners. For the released prisoners, they represent a close person from the law abiding society who cares for them genuinely. Hence they feel a personal obligation not to offend the law. Volunteers are also more flexible then the administration, which is a valuable aspect, especially in the immediate period following the release from prison, a critical period, when the released prisoner needs both emotional and practical help.
Moreover, this kind of relationship may reduce the help the released prisoner seeks from professional in crisis moments. And since released prisoner are often suspicious of the state authorities and workers, the volunteers may serve as bridge between them and strengthen their trust in the community services.
Volunteers can also contribute greatly to educating the public at large about the problems of released prisoners. Hence, promoting more tolerance toward released prisoners and a willingness to integrate them.
Therefore, the PRA sees pairing volunteers with released prisoners as one of the most effective and efficient way to accompany prisoners on the first period of their return to society.
Conclusions
To conclude, in order to rehabilitate a released prisoner we must change the public and its leaders’ attitude toward them, as an initial condition for proper professional activities. Professionalism must be co-ordinated and integrated with the PRA. The volunteers, being the expression of society’s real willingness to integrate released prisoners.
Putting the mayors at the head of a council that represents all of the economy and society’s arms offers a strong roof over the activities of the professionals and volunteers.
If we do open our professional community’s arms and integrate released prisoners from prison to society, these will be the strong arms that will enable the prisoners to rehabilitate and pass the bridge to their rehabilitation in the community. If we do all of the activities we mentioned today, we shall go hand in hand with the Psalms saying: “The Lord is good and upright; therefore, He leads sinners on the [good] road”. (Psalms 25:8)
[1] The released prisoner is adopted by one of the families of the kibbutz. He then takes part in the life of the Kibbutz, working according its rules.
[2] The released prisoner, under the supervision of the rabbi, learns bible and is participating in all the programs of the seminar.