Behind the Walls

In this system, you can’t trust anybody. Like, even on the streets, I’ve never trusted my own brother. But now, in Ni-Miikana, I’m starting to get that trust back. You just gotta be careful what you say in here, and you’ll be all right.

Despite falling crime rates, more rights for inmates, and better training for correctional officers, Canada’s prison population is on the rise, and outbreaks of violence continue to grab headlines. Applying Erving Goffman’s frame theory and drawing on interviews with inmates and correctional officers in federal and provincial institutions, Michael Weinrath assesses whether improvements over the past twenty-five years have truly led to “better corrections.”

Behind the Walls offers an unprecedented look at life in contemporary prisons. Inmates and staff describe their transition to prison life and corrections work, and they explain how they frame or understand their roles and how they relate to others. They provide commentaries on key developments and problems, including the experiences of female correctional officers in male prisons, boundary violations by correctional officers, the introduction of behavioural programs, and the rise of prison gangs.

Weinrath’s balanced assessment reveals that although prisons have seen improvements, they continue to be plagued by problems that prevent inmates from forging positive relationships among themselves and with correctional officers.