Letters to the Editors

Prisoner farms aren’t broken

Dear Editors,

Re: “Farm closures sow dissent” (Oct. 13, 2009)

I have great concern over the possibility of the prison farms in the Kingston area closing. These farms are sustainable providing meat, milk and eggs to the Corrections Canada Institutions in the Kingston area. Some surplus eggs are even sent to the local food bank. Performing meaningful and productive work gives the inmates a sense of contribution to the community which, in some fashion, they have damaged by their actions. Why is Corrections Canada stopping something that’s working economically, emotionally, socially and sustainably?

Does Corrections Canada have data showing that working on prison farms, with the confidence and skills inmates learn and use there, doesn’t provide jobs when the inmates leave? That meaningful, productive work isn’t important to rehabilitation?

Hiring more psychologists, social workers and other staff for programs for substance abuse and anger management must go hand in hand with good work experiences. In addition to these programs, why not bring back carpentry and welding along with working on the farms? Prison farms aren’t broken—there’s no need to fix them.

May Corrections Canada be blessed with wisdom and good common sense in this regard.

Sister Pauline Lally

General Superior

Society revision

Dear Editors,

Re: “Ease perils of prostitution” (Oct. 16, 2009)

I agree with the Journal’s Oct. 16 editorial “Ease perils of prostitution.”

Prostitution has always been a highly sensitive subject. It’s completely understandable and expected the actions of these three sex trade workers move to decriminalize prostitution are the cause of some heated debates.

Laws are set up to protect the people. The current law is too contradictory in itself to be truly effective. So as prostitution continues to sit in the grey area of being technically not illegal, many people engaged in this line of work are forced to go ‘underground’ and often work in unsafe environments with very little legal protection.

I hope in the future no one will engage in this line of work, willingly or not. But in the meantime, if legalizing prostitution means more security and safety for those working in the sex business then yes, I think we should make the revision and take this step forward as a society.

Tian Wang,

ArtSci ’09

All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s)-in-Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be contacted, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to journal_editors@ams.queensu.ca.

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