USA: getting past the barriers, when a mother is in prison

Source - The New York Times

Allowing incarcerated mothers to interact and play with their children during visits helps maintain a sense of family connection and may reduce the trauma of separation.

When Courtney Saunders was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for drug possession, everything in her life seemed to be falling apart. But perhaps the most agonizing aspect was that she would be separated from her daughters, then 4 and 2.

“Visits in jail took place behind plexiglass windows, no physical contact,” said Ms. Saunders. “I worried this would traumatize my daughters if they saw me like that. If we were given the chance to have a more child-friendly visit, that would have meant so much to the mothers there — it would have helped us hold onto some hope,” she said.

After serving six months at Bristol County Jail and House of Correction in North Dartmouth, Mass., in 2015, she was able to convince the judge to send her to a mandated treatment program where she was able to call her children daily. “Even if it was only for five minutes, I always called. It helped me be part of their day and stay connected.”

Ms. Saunders, now 30, was able to get sober and has since reunited with her girls.

Currently, over 200,000 women are imprisoned in the United States, the majority for nonviolent drug or property offenses, which have recently skyrocketed in connection with the opioid crisis.

The number of children in foster care or living with relatives has soared as well.

According to the Vera Institute of Justice, a nonprofit research organization, women are the country’s fastest-growing prison population, and 80 percent of them are mothers. The overwhelming majority were the primary caregivers of their children.

The opportunity for an incarcerated mother to see her children can vary greatly by state, correctional facility and who has custody.

Prison visits are typically not recommended for parents who have committed certain violent crimes or abused their children; experts say there is a strong chance such visits will cause further trauma. But when family visits are appropriate, studies show that implementing them in a child-friendly way helps maintain the familial connection, potentially mitigates some of the separation trauma for both parent and child and reduces recidivism.

In many states, children in foster care have mandated visits with incarcerated parents, facilitated through state agencies. But when children with incarcerated mothers are cared for by family members, two-thirds of those caregivers struggle with poverty and often have trouble arranging to travel for visits — especially if the mother is in prison in another state.

Even when the children go to see their mothers, the settings for the visits do little to encourage parent-child bonding. Many jails prohibit physical contact, and visits take place through a plexiglass window, which can make children anxious.

Read full article.