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Women in Prison
By C. Tower, former POW
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Illustration by Michael Flowe, POW |
A Member of Congress or the Senate can hardly be quoted about
drugs now without a heart-rending "They're killing our children"
or a straight-faced "This is all about families" finding
its way into the story. Yet one result of their mandatory sentencing
laws is that more and more women are now doing time.
Seventy-five thousand women are serving prison sentences in
the USA, most of them mothers. The number is growing by 9% a
year. Most of them are in prison for drug law violations. This
is all in the name of protecting families and children, who are
of course our future. And when the motherless mature what are
we to expect of them? It is easy to imagine, again, our nation's
approach to drugs doing more harm than good.
This issue we highlight the injustice of drug war sentencing
on women and the collateral cost which their children and loved
ones must pay.
Becky Stewart
Ivonne Gonzalez
Wenseslada Reyes
Diana Lopez-Mesa
Lillian Lee
Zulima Buitrago
Maria Herrera
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