Analysis of Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing Essay -- Ted Conover Prisons S

compend of Newjack Guarding Sing Sing Unable to get official permission to query and write to the highest degree correctional police officers, Ted Conover, author of the book Newjack Guarding Sing Sing, got in by applying for a correctional officer position. by and by training, he and his buster rookies, kn throw as newjacks, were randomly assigned to Sing Sing, one of the countrys close famous -- and infamous -- prisons. Sing Sing, a maximum-security male prison, was built in 1828 by prisoners themselves, kept at their task by frequent character of the whip. Today, the chaos, the dressingbiting, the rundown building and equipment, the disrespect and the relentless stress that Conover experienced in his year at Sing Sing show, quite well, how the increase of prisons in the U.S. brutalizes much than just the prisoners. Some of the individuals in Conovers entering class of de patchment of corrections trainees had always wanted to work in law enforceme nt. Others were ex-military, looking for a civilian job that they thought would reward structure and discipline. But some(prenominal) came looking for a steady job with good benefits. To get it, they were horrific enough to commute hours each way, or level(p) to live away from their families during the work week. Their job consists of long days locking and unlocking cells, moving prisoners to and from heterogeneous locations while the prisoners beg, hassle and abuse them. Sometimes, the prisoners requests are simple, but against the rules an duplicate shower, some contraband cigarettes. Other times, they are appropriate, but unbelievably complicated it back tooth take months to get information about property lost in the transfer from one prison to another. Meanwhile, the orders officers give are ignored. Discipline -- even among the officers themselves -- is non-existent. And with the money and benefits of this good job come nightmares and family stress, daily uncertainty ab out ones job and duties, and pent-up frustration that, every so often, explodes in force out -- instigated by staff as well as by prisoners.The demo this book paints would no doubt bother corrections professionals in prisons where prisoner-staff relationships and officer solidarity are more developed. In training, Conover is told that the most important thing you peck learn here is to communicate with inmates. And the Sing Sing staff who have it away the most success and fulfillment i... ...ing of their feeling about Sing Sing. After reading Newjack, I clearly appreciate the difficulty, the chaos and the stress of an officers job. I am less sure how they manage to do it, and I rarity at what cost to their sense of self it has on them. By contrast, with a few well-chosen stories, Conover humanizes individual prisoners one who has lines from Anne Franks diary tattooed on his back a prisoner on the serving line who tries to sneak extra food to his friends a young, emotionally nee dy prisoner grasping for guardianship from anyone, even an officer. As a result, the prisoners are often drawn with more humanity than the staff. I feel that this book gives a rough, inspiring and wild warning that the rush to imprison offenders hurts the guards as well as the guarded. Conover reminds us that when we treat prisoners like the garbage of society, we are bound to treat prison staff as garbage men -- best out of sight, their own dirt surpassed only by the dirt they handle. Conover says in one part of his book, Eventually admitting that being in a position of power and insecurity brings out a side of myself I dont like. I feel both prisoners and officers deserve better.