THe Yellow Brick Road

After watching the HBO series OZ, or some of it, as well as an episode of 30 days, I can't help but contmeplate the prison system and how it can be made better. The best solution comes from a book I read a year ago, the Autobiography of Malcom X. Malcom X lived on the street for most of his adolescent and ealry adult years, he ended up in prison for seven years for theft. He spent the majority of his time pouring through books mostly books pertaining to Islam as he was first introduced to it in this time. When he was released he was a devout Muslim and later became one of the forerunners for the civil rights movement of the 1960's, an advocat of human rights and much more.
The point here is that he had access to a library while in prison, this gave him the opportunity to study a topic he was very much interested in. All prisoners have is time. This time should be used to help these individuals, not just punish them. I believe that humans end up in the penal system, not because it is their nature, but because of the circumstances they were born, or forced into. Education is the way out, it has always been the one thing that can gaurentee progress in a society. Education is the one thing that can gaurentee a better life for people, especially those of desperate means.
Prisons in the US are over crowded right now, the US has the highest prison population in the world. The reason for this is largely due to the war on drugs and also because of the cyclical effect of the system. Those who leave usually end up coming right back in.
Though there is no way to force inmates to study there are certainly many incentives that will lead many if not all to take up this opportunity while in jail.
My plan is this: Have a library at every institution, or an agreement with nearby public libraries for book check outs. Have teachers (volunteer or not) available in order to help along those inmates who can not help themselves, especially for the illiterate. Encourage inmates to study what they have an interest in. General topics often bore indviduals and will defeat the purpose. This is not for a GED or to gain a career, this is a practice in gaining desire for knowledge and only that.
If the majority of prisoners are incarcerated on drug charges then those are the ones I believe this program would benefit the most. Drug dealers and users are generally non-violent and frequently only looking for means of subsistence. If they can find another focus for their lives then the War will be won.
The prison system in the US needs to change, and soon. The injustice of closing off these people from their lives is monumental. If the time they are put away can be used to benefit their lives then maybe it will be worth it. It may also be possible that those who gain the desire for knowledge will not only benefit themselves, but those around them and build up our communities to create a better country for us all.