By
Creasie Finney Hairston, Ph.D
Inmate Fathers are Parents too...
Frequent
visiting between separated fathers and their children is important
to the well-being of fathers and children and to the maintenance
of parent-child bonds. Family visiting during imprisonment depends,
however, not only on individual preferences but also on corrections
policy.
Although most states indicate that the purpose of visiting is to
maintain family relationships, parent-child relationships are rarely
addressed in state-level policy directives. State policies governing
visiting seldom reflects the special needs of children, the importance
of frequent parent-child contact, or the nature of complex family
networks.
These policy guidelines are provided to strengthen prisoners' family
ties and enhance relationships between incarcerated fathers and
their children. All have been implemented successfully by some states
but none have been universally adopted, Although the focus is fathers,
the directives apply to incarcerated mothers as well. Implementation
of these policies will enable a state to demonstrate its commitment
to the maintenance of prisoner-family relationships and its recognition
that inmate fathers are parents too.
Visiting Schedules
Children and their incarcerated parents should be permitted to have
at a minimum, weekly visits. Visiting schedules should be flexible
and permit weekday, weekend and evening visits. Prison visiting
schedules are restrictive and permit visiting only on certain days
at certain times. Schedules seldom take into consideration non-prison
work and school schedules resulting in limited access for many families
and individuals.
Frequent contact between separated parents and children is important
in preserving parent-child attachments. Visits provide children
and parents ongoing opportunities for sharing memories, creating
new experiences, and remaining in touch with each other. Providing
a range of times when children may visit enhances the likelihood
of frequent visiting. Children's caretakers and other family members
are better able to arrange visits when options which do not unduly
disrupt their regular schedules are available.
Special Visits
Opportunities for extended visits (day-long and/or overnight) involving
incarcerated fathers, children, and other family members should
be provided.
Fathers who are in prison have limited contact with their children.
Even those who have frequent visits are seldom able to engage in
daily experiences that are part of being a family. Parents and children
need to have opportunities to spend extended, uninterrupted time
together in community-like environments such as the picnic areas,
family trailers, and children's centers found at some prisons.
Special visits permit parents and children to prepare meals and
eat together, play games or sports, and carry out other routine,
though meaningful, family activities. They also provide opportunities
for families to celebrate special occasions such as Father=s Day,
birthdays, and Christmas together. Theses special visits help fathers
and children feel connected to each other, share meaningful experiences
and special moments, and remain a part of each other's lives.
Permission and Escorts
Written permission from children's mothers should not be required
for children to visit their incarcerated fathers. Persons who are
allowed to accompany a child on a visit should include an adult
on the prisoner's visiting list or an adult in an official capacity
such as the child's social worker.
Prison rules often identify a child's custodial parent, an adult
who may have little or no interest in the prisoner, as the sole
source of approval for a child's visit or as the only adult who
may accompany the child on a visit. An estranged spouse may not
authorize a child's visit based on her relationship with the prisoner,
rather that on the child's needs or interests. A child's custodian
may not be opposed to, or may indeed be in favor of, a child's spending
time with his or her incarcerated father, but prefer not to visit
herself. In these situations, policies which require a custodial
parent's approval or presence may result in the child's inability
to visit.
Prison officials are not in a position to determine what is best
for a child, to resolve family disputes, or to monitor complex family
relations. A father's inability to spend time with his children
should be based on family preference or court order derived from
careful study rather than on prison rules.
Children's Visiting Areas
Child-centered, supervised areas should be established and maintained
in all prisons. Toys, books, games, and other activities appropriate
for children of different ages should be provided.
Corrections visiting policies, generally, place restrictions on
social interactions between parents and children during visits.
They, in addition, stress discipline and control of children and
do not make provisions for child-centered activities. It is not
reasonable, however, to expect young children to sit still and remain
orderly throughout a prison visit. Even older children become restless
and bored when talking is the only activity permitted. The visiting
room environment should promote informal, relaxed social interaction
between parents and children. Areas where parents and children can
play together and where children may participate in supervised activities
while adults spend some time in private conversation promote the
maintenance of family relationships.
Parent Support Services
Parent education, parent support groups and family counseling should
be made available to prisoners. These services should be provided
by social services staff who are professionally prepared in the
social and behavioral sciences and who are knowledgeable about family
dynamics. Both corrections staff and staff of community agencies
are appropriate service providers.
The majority of men in prison are fathers. Although most want to
be better parents, many have not had adequate preparation for parenting.
Others have difficulty in assuming a long distance parenting relationship
and in sharing parenting with an individual with whom they may have
little influence.
Educational programs, parent support groups and family counseling
can help fathers better understand and respond to the normal developmental
needs of their children and the special problems caused by parental
absence. They can assist parents in preparing for visits, in addressing
children's and custodial parents' concerns which arise from visits
and in dealing with stresses associated with fathers' limited involvement
in their children's lives. Family-oriented programs and services
are also helpful in preparing men for responsible parental and family
roles when they return to their homes.
Cultural Diversity
Visiting policies, programs and services should reflect awareness
of and respect for cultural diversity. Staff and volunteers involved
in these programs should reflect the racial make-up of the prison
population.
African Americans and other minorities constitute the majority,
or a substantial number, of the prisoners in many institutions.
Since minority lifestyles, family structures, problems and expectations
often differ from those of majority culture, different service responses
are required to meet the needs of the prison population.
The presence of African American and other minority staff and volunteers
in decision making and program provider roles increases the likelihood
that different cultural perspectives will be represented in policies
and programs. The incorporation of minority and family content as
an integral component of volunteer orientation and staff training
strengthens a correctional system's capacity to provide effective,
culturally responsive, programs of high quality.
Conscious, deliberate, and concerted efforts are needed to develop
and sustain visiting environments and experiences which promote,
rather than inhibit, strong, positive family relationships.
Administrative Structures
Parent-child visiting policies and programs should be a collaborative
effort of the prison administration, community professional and
prisoners. Formal structures should be established to assure involvement
of these different groups.
Administrators, social service professional and prisoners, even
when sharing a common vision, bring different views and concerns
to program development. Recognition of these differences is important
to the development of successful program. Policy directives and
program guidelines must reflect administrative concerns with security,
safety, and order. They should also reflect professional knowledge
about way to promote and nurture positive parent-child relationships
and prisoners' concerns about their own parenting and family roles
and needs.
Prisoner involvement is also important in creating a sense of pride
and ownership among those served by the program. This type of involvement
affects both participation and the desire to protect the integrity
of the program. Policy advisory groups, project task forces, and
joint staffing are among the approaches used to effect collaborative
planning and program implementation.
These guidelines were developed by Creasie Finney Hairston, Ph.D.
and are based on studies of prison policies and family oriented
programs. The views are those of the author.
Jane
Addams Center for Social Policy and Research
Jane Addams College of Social Work
University of Illinois at Chicago
1040 W. Harrison (m/c 309)
Chicago, Illinois 60607-7134
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