Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 14, Number 2, 1 February 1997 — Hawaiian prisoners want programs that will instill pride [ARTICLE]

Hawaiian prisoners want programs that will instill pride

Submitted by Kaleihau Kamauu The greatest tragedy after we get here is the tendency towards being warehoused, locked away with little eoneem for rehabilitation. There are man) in the prison system who are dedicated and devoted towards healing, rehabilitation and programs. But it seems they fight against a more powerful force. Even our own efforts are met with resistance, and programs designed in one branch of govemment get shafted in the next. If we are committed to change then we all need to work together. We need to get out of this 80s and 90s mentality of program cuts and lock-down and more toward converting our prisons from "warehouses for the living dead" into universities that teach self-identity, a sense of community, commitment to social change and empowerment. 1 see the attitude to build more prisons as the latest in our attempt to be like the Jones'. They, the Jones', have been doing that for the past 20-plus years and except for growing prison space and populahon, what have they gained? Nothing! In some places the prison industry is known as "the fastest growing form of public housing." Many also view the "prison business" as America's latest eeonomie boon. There's been conferences, reports, studies, eonsortiums, going back to the 1970s, all to address the problem of Hawaiians being disporportionately represented in prison. One thing I find sad and unfortunate is that through all of this, there is no pa'ahao input. We've formed a private, non-profit organization, Kāko'o Kanaka. We hope to build upon our support system including pa'ahao and our families. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. referred to it as the "paralysis of analysis." That is, paralyzed by analyzing and reanalyzing and discussing and rediscussing the issue over and over again. In this case, for us, it's the prison issue and the statistics that show how we disporportionately represent the prison populahon and how we fare the worst in every step of the eiiminal justice system, from arrest

to conviction to sentencing to confinement. While it is good to share information and fellowship and be able to feed off of one another's positive energy, at some point we have to move and do I for ourselves where other institutions have failed. I am an advocate of cultural-based education and rehabilitation programs in the prison system. I would like to see Hawaiian language classes, Hawaiian history classes and classes that explore and teach traditional Hawaiian values. I also know the importance of formal education and the need for vocational programs. State budget cuts are mainly at fault for the laek of programs. Also, President Clinton's 1994 "Crime Bill" (Act) took away incarcerated students' eligibility for Pell Grants. So, we in here, are up against some unreal odds as we try to rehabilitate ourselves. But we have a lot to offer and it is our healing, our future at stake. Our families and our eommunity know this also, because most of us will get out someday and return to our communities. If we go back to our old ways we will be perpetuating a movement that is wiping us out as a people. On the other hand, if we do all we ean and survive this prison experience, who knows? We may be able to save our kids from this. Kamauu is a prisoner at Halawa Correctional Facility in High Security. Editor's note: Prisoners at Halawa High Security don't receive the s ame programs and opportunities as other prisoners due to security, cost and s paee constraints. High security has four categories ofprisoners: close custody, maximum security, protective custody and mental health. Prisoners from different categories, according to the security rules, cannot he moved about the prison at the s ame time. "It has to go hand in hand with security, we can't have a teacher in there without security," s aid Maureen Tito, the education program managerfor the Department ofPublic Safety. Prisoners in close custody ean work toward their GED and enroll in college courses available on HITS, Hawaii lnteractive Television System. All prisoners in high security are reclassified every four months Tito said. Pending good behavior, a prisoner ean move from maximum security to close custody. M

Programs for prisoners continued from page 3 !

After they receive their GED, prisoners ean . even take college courses through HITS, Hawai'i Interactive Television System, whieh prisoners pay for themselves. The purpose of these programs is to

give prisoners the skills needed for employment and to help them live normal, healthy lives after prison, Tito said. "They (exoffenders) really just need a space to heal and I don't think there's anything out there," Tito said. Programs at Kahi Mohala, Castle

and Hina Mauka offer substance abuse treatment, counseling and other healing programs. However, they work through health insurance, Tito said. If you don't have insurance or if you are covered j under MedQUEST, you may only get one week of treatment. A new non-profit organization within the prison has been created by the prisoners them- i selves, called Kāko'o Kanaka. The group's goal is to voice prisoner concerns and work with prison administration and other professionals to create programs they feel they need. Their primary focus is achieving a sense of accomplishment and identi- I ty by learning traditional Hawaiian values. Through these steps Kāko'o Kanaka hopes to work 1 toward a "restorative justice" approach to the eom- :

"They (exoffenders) really just need a space to heal and I don't think there's anything out there." — Maureen Tito i wwwwwww