Are chain gangs good in the context of the criminal justice system? This paper looks at chain gangs as something positive to prevent future crime. A history of its use is also included. This seven page paper makes use of eight references.
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Societys concept of convict labor is based on the days of old when prisoners were shackled together at the ankles and forced to work along our nations
roadsides or railroads preforming duties which required little mental effort but extraordinary physical commitments. When we entertain such thoughts it is difficult to prevent strains of the blues from
permeating our minds, blues sung in tune to the sound of rocks being shattered under sledgehammers wielded by weary men who would rather be doing anything than what they are
being forced to do by an armed guard. We think of the old prison movies where men have been wrongly committed to a life of hard labor and where
their only thoughts revolve around escape. What we should be thinking of, however, is the dire situation our criminal justice system is facing in contemporary times. We should
also be thinking of the toll criminal activity has taken on the nation as a whole, of the lives lost and the property destroyed by men and women who seem
intent on nothing but waging war on societal mores and norms. The answer to the situation we are currently facing is not leniency, indeed it is stiffened penalties for
criminal behavior. A very important component of those penalties is the use of convict labor. We must face the fact that our
criminal justice system as it currently stands is simply not working. According to Parade Magazine "someone in the United States is murdered, raped, assaulted, or robbed every sixteen seconds"
(Moyers). Statistics from the Center for disease control highlight violence as being the leading health issue of our time (Lovett). This is ahead of AIDS, heart disease and