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<b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#484848">USA - Life as an Inmate - & Mother - In a Women’s Prison<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#484848"><img width="480" height="320" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image002.jpg@01D52699.EA9E91D0" alt="https://womensenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/pregnant-woman.jpg"><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#484848">By: <a href="https://womensenews.org/author/linda-argila/" title="Read All Posts By Linda Argila">
<span style="color:#484848;text-decoration:none">Linda Argila</span></a>* – May 23, 2019<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#151719">The numbers are shocking but true. The number of women and young girls behind bars has increased by <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/women-girls-black-white-hispanic-prison-jail-skyrockets-920436" target="_blank"><span style="color:#298A9E;text-decoration:none">700
percent</span></a> in fewer than 30 years. In fact, women represent the <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/policing/2018/02/16/when-comes-lowering-female-incarceration-rates-states-must-step-up/331217002/" target="_blank"><span style="color:#298A9E;text-decoration:none">fastest
growing</span></a> prison population in the United States. Perhaps even more shocking is that 60 percent of women in prisons have a child under age 18, and 60 percent of incarcerated women <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/incarcerated-women-fastest-growing-population-unique-challenges-688968" target="_blank"><span style="color:#298A9E;text-decoration:none">haven’t
actually been convicted of a crime, but</span></a> are simply awaiting trial because their bail is unaffordable. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:.25in;background:white"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#151719">I’m no stranger to these numbers, because I was one of them. Seventeen years ago, I was sentenced to one year and
one day in Danbury Federal Correctional Facility for harboring a fugitive. Six months pregnant, young and in love, I discovered that the father of my unborn child was one of the biggest marijuana smugglers in the country. Since he was never captured, I faced
a decade of federal interrogations, until I was torn away from my daughter, who was then just nine years old. Although life-shattering, I witnessed firsthand the way incarceration rips at the hearts of children and families, and the injustices that women face
behind bars – both on a physical and emotional level. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:.25in;background:white"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#151719">During my time in prison, I, like other women, went to bed hungry; underwent hard, physical labor; and cleaned toilets
with no cleaning supplies in a prison housing over 300 inmates. Toiletries were impossible to come by, and feminine hygiene products were not available. I also lost my name and identity when the system assigned me a number: I became #43949. And just when I
thought I was finally “free,” things couldn’t have gotten any worse. After leaving prison, I was assigned to a halfway house before going home. It was drug-ridden and infested with roaches, and surrounded by other inmates who were predominantly men. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:.25in;background:white"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#151719">Prison brutalizes women, but this is especially true for mothers with young children. In my case, my young daughter,
Ashley, was left emotionally scarred after I was pulled from her life. While it’s been 17 years since I was behind bars, she says it still feels like yesterday. My daughter isn’t alone in her feelings, however. Statistically, two out of every 28 kids in every
classroom have at least parent in jail, amounting to over three million children who are victims of parental incarceration. Many end up in foster care, which can be a terrifying experience for a child. Even more disheartening, mothers are more likely to be
incarcerated far from home since there are fewer women’s prisons, making face-to-face visits with their children difficult and expensive. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:.25in;background:white"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#151719">My experience in prison as a young mother, along with the experiences of millions of other mothers in the US, is the
reason why I am sharing my story and advocating to change how women are sentenced in the criminal justice system. There are many alternatives to prison–like home confinement, probation and community service– especially for first-time offenders who are convicted
of nonviolent crimes. Not only will alternatives to incarceration save taxpayers thousands of dollars, it will also keep families together, helping children live healthier and more productive lives. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:.25in;background:white"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#151719">What happened to me, can happen to anyone. A poor decision or choice in the moment can have an irrevocable impact,
but everyone deserves a second chance. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:.25in;background:white"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif;color:#151719">*Author
<em><span style="font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif">Linda Argila is a motivational speaker and prison survivor dedicated to helping women overcome challenges, and to prison reform.<o:p></o:p></span></em></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma",sans-serif"><a href="https://womensenews.org/2019/05/life-as-an-inmate-and-mother-in-a-womens-prison/">https://womensenews.org/2019/05/life-as-an-inmate-and-mother-in-a-womens-prison/</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:.25in;background:white"><span style="color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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