Disruptive Prisoners

Chris Clarkson is a professor in the Department of History at Okanagan College.Melissa Munn is a professor in the Department of Sociology at Okanagan College.

• AcknowledgmentsPrefaceIntroductionSerendipity: Finding VoicesWriting a Social History of PrisonsStudy Parameters and LimitationsOrganization of this BookSection One: Disrupting the Old Order1. Riots and Reform: Political Action and the Making of the Archambault ReportThe ProtestCauses of the RiotContext of ResistanceThe Illusion of ReformRiots and Revelations: Deconstructing the Narrative2. The Blueprint for the New Deal: The Archambault Commission Re-envisions ReformRoyal Commission Mandate and FindingsPrison ConditionsRecommendations of the Archambault ReportClassification, Segregation, and the Protection of Young PrisonersThe Borstal Ascendency in Canadian PenitentiariesConsolidation of GovernanceReception of the ReportPost-War Pressure for ImplementationThe Gibson ReportSauvant’s ProgressGibson’s PlanSection Two: Disruptive Influences3. "Men Who Beefed": Writing the New DealThe Creation of the Penal Press in CanadaThe Penal Press ExpandsTaking Shape: The Technical Aspects of the Penal PressThe Penal Press Finds Purpose"Prisoners are People" and the "New Deal" MaterializeStrength in Numbers: The Penal Press Goes International"Keeping It Real" or "What to Write about in the Penal Press"The Difficulties of Being THE Voice of Prisoners4. The New Deal: Same as the Old Deal?Classification and SegregationUsing Classification to Achieve a Rehabilitated SubjectAchieving Security and Efficiency through Classification and SegregationReducing Idleness through ClassificationStaying Connected: Visitation and Correspondence in PrisonEducation and Vocational TrainingWork and IndustryMollycoddling and the Defense of the New DealThe New Deal… Same as the Old Deal?5. Time Off: Clemency, Remission, and ParoleGood TimeThe First-Year ProblemThe Earned/Lost ProblemActs of GraceAmnestyRemission Branch – Royal Prerogative of MercyRemission Branch – Ticket-Of-LeaveParoleAutonomyBoard CompositionInterim Progress: Automatic ReviewDisappointment: Prisoners Are People but We Don’t Need to Meet ThemDisappointment: Denial of ParoleDisappointment: Drug Addicts and AlcoholicsGetting the Public On-SideEarly Progress ReportsReason for Optimism?6. New Deal/Old Deal Discontent and CensorshipThe Official Face of ReformThe Contested View of ReformSituation Critical: The New Deal RiotAntecedents to the Riot: Daily Life and OvercrowdingCensorship: Controlling the New Deal’s NarrativeConclusionTalk of Violence, Mismanagement, and Progressive ReformA Story of Uneven ProgressDisrupting Methodology: On the Importance of Muti-vocality/History from BelowDisrupting the Idea that Change Comes from the TopDisrupting the Idea that "We Blew It"Disrupting the "Con"Disrupting Singular NarrativesAppendix A: Excerpts from Commissioner’s Annual Reports detailing Psychiatric Services 1947–1957Appendix B: Article Refused for Publication in Pathfinder 1953BibliographyEndnotes

"Including prisoner stories in an historical context provided a more nuanced and complicated reframing of the post-Archambault Commission era."- Beverly Cramp (BC BookWorld) "The pair [Clarkson and Munn] writes with a cohesive voice, and considering the polyvocal and collective biographical approach they take towards their writing, this is impressive." - Katie-Marie McNeill, Queen’s University (Labour/Le Travail)