Conversations with Correctional Staff: COVID:19, Confinement, and Culture at Rikers Island Jail

• In Event: Research on Jail Staff

Abstract

Literature on corrections tends to focus on the lived experiences of those who are incarcerated in prisons or detained in jails, and less so on the stories of those who work in carceral cells. Furthermore, when the general population thinks of correctional officers (COs), the collective image that comes to mind is usually that of male, prison guards – White males, to be exact. Yet, scant attention has been paid to the disparities in experiences among COs of different racial-ethnic groups, specifically those employed in jails who are “a largely ignored work group in the area of institutional corrections (Lambert & Paoline, 2016). As the percentage of correctional staff from different racial-ethnic backgrounds grows exponentially and with increasing numbers of women employed in correctional spaces, more inquiry is needed into their distinct experiences. Specifically, this research explores the challenges that this group of COs faced during the COVID-19 pandemic; ascertains perceptions on confinement to include the closing of Rikers Island Jail; and relationships between COs at various stages in their careers. In this article, I put Black and Latinx male and female COs at the forefront to demonstrate how their gender, racial-ethnic background, and unique work environment make their experiences inimitable.

Author

• Simone Martin-Howard, John Jay College of Criminal Justice