Parents in prison

Earlier this year, when a cluster of cases of the coronavirus were diagnosed in the South Dakota Women’s Prison in Pierre, officials took a number of measures to respond to the crisis. Among those measures was to halt in-person visits to inmates. The 78,000 square foot facility, authorized in 1995, is sometimes referred to as the “new” prison. Medical, dental, and optometric services for inmates are provided by the state Department of Health. Mental health services are provided by the Department of Social Services. The pandemic has altered the patterns of visitation for inmates. Family members with access to computers can arrange video conferences with inmates, but in-person visits are being severely limited to try to stem the spread of the disease.

Of course limits to visits are happening in all of the correctional institutions in our state and across the nation, but the Women’s Prison has a unique dynamic because among the visitors at the Women’s Prison are children.

Since 1980, the number of incarcerated women has grown by more than 750 percent in the United States, more than twice the rate of men. The increase has been driven by a rise in the imprisonment of women for property and drug-related crimes. The result is that at least 5 million children - about 7 percent of American youth - have had an incarcerated parent. More than 60 percent of women in state prisons have minor children. Most of those women were the primary caretakers of their children up to the point of imprisonment. The rate is even higher in county jails, where 80 percent of female inmates have minor children.

Many of the women in prison have themselves been victims of crime including domestic violence. When the mom goes to prison the family is devastated. The majority of children with imprisoned mothers in South Dakota are cared for by family members. Many are living with grandparents.

When women complete their sentences, they often are not able to care for their children. The ramifications of a prison sentence last a long time after release. Housing is a major problem, as many landlords will not rent to anyone with a criminal record.

Our communities often do not see the suffering of children whose parents are incarcerated. Often those children do not feel that they can talk about their problems because of the stigma attached to those who are incarcerated. Having a mother in prison often results in challenges for children in school and with social relationships in part because they fear telling their stories.

Parental rights can be terminated for incarcerated mothers because they are unable to care for their children. They can also be terminated because of addiction. A failed drug test can be evidence enough for a judge to suspend parental rights. Children whose mothers are in prison often end up in the state’s foster care system, often moving from home to home and suffering lifelong consequences a a result. I couldn’t find the statistics for South Dakota, but in Texas where the largest number of women are imprisoned, nearly 20,000 children enter the state’s foster care system. Parental incarceration is a leading cause of children entering the system.

There is evidence that children who have had a parent who is incarcerated are far more likely to end up in jail or prison themselves. Trauma during childhood is often a factor in the lives of those who are convicted of crimes.

In this season of praying for children, I am thinking of children whose lives have been upended by facts over which they have no control. I don’t know the solutions for our society which has laws to protect the security of its citizens and punishment for those who break those laws. I don’t know how we can prevent incarceration by preventing crime. I do know that there all too often children are the victims of those crimes and are not immediately seen by the judicial system as such. I do know that foster families who open their homes to children in need deserve our support as they seek to provide for the needs of some of those children.

There is much that needs to be done to care for the children of those who are incarcerated. Raising awareness is part of the solution. Working to reduce stigma so that children are able to talk about their situation is necessary. Providing additional counseling and school support will require increased funding for schools who are often in the position to provide social services, but lack the funds to implement necessary programs.

We bring before you, Gracious God, the children whose mothers and fathers are in jail or prison. They are victims. In Jesus, you taught us that visiting in prison is visiting to you. Whatever we do to one of the least of these, we do to you. Caring for the children of those who are in jail is a way of demonstrating our faith. Help us to work with others to create a better network of care for those whose parents are incarcerated. May they receive the love and nurture that is necessary for their growth. May they find secure homes and enough food to sustain their lives.

Be with the parents who are separated from their children as a result of poor choices and behavior that caused harm to others. Be with the corrections officers to seek to provide safety and security to our communities. Be with the judges who have to weigh difficult circumstances. Remind all of them of the children who are affected by the system. Remind all of us of our calling to care for those children.

We often address you as our father, but we know that there are children who do not know the security of a positive parent-child relationship and who cannot think of you as a parent because of the ways they have been hurt by the behavior of their parents. Help them to know positive relationships and to come close to you despite the choices of their parents.

Bless all of the children. Give a special blessing to those whose parents are in jail or prison. Amen.

Copyright (c) 2020 by Ted E. Huffman. I wrote this. If you would like to share it, please direct your friends to my web site. If you'd like permission to copy, please send me an email. Thanks!

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