Massachusetts Judiciary Joint Committee
Testimony for S.1979/H.1795 and An Act to Reduce Mass Incarceration, (S.1045 / H.1821),
Caroline Bays, Watertown Massachusetts
Dear Chairs Eldridge and Day,
Thank you for hearing my testimony today on S.1979 / H.1795, an act that would establish a five-year moratorium on building new prisons.
I am usually before you as a Watertown city councilor or as a board member on behalf of Progressive Massachusetts. But today I am here on behalf of my dear friend who has spent the last 16 of his 35 years in prison.
Six years ago, I had a life-changing event when I was asked to visit this young man who was experiencing a mental health crisis. As a result, I have seen up close how dysfunctional, counter-productive, and destructive prisons are to the human beings who live within those walls.
Prisons no longer even pay lip service to rehabilitation; they are designed purely for punishment. They no longer try to help people get back on their feet and become productive members of our society. The stories I have heard–the danger, harm, cruelty, and viciousness he has experienced are destructive not just to him but to our society and who we are as a state.
Prisons as they are currently structured do not make us safer–they make us less safe. And we are harming the most vulnerable members of our society–people who need help. We are putting people who are mentally ill in prison; we are putting people who are addicted to drugs in prison; we are putting people who are experiencing dire poverty in prison.
Since when did we decide that it was morally right to treat those who need our help as criminals and deny them the support and treatment they need? Whom does it help? This is cruel to those impacted and actually decreases our safety.
In addition I also ask you to support An Act to Reduce Mass Incarceration (S.1045 / H.1821). These bills go hand in hand because ending life without parole and the imprisonment of people who committed crimes when they were teenagers not only counters everything we know about human development, it unnecessarily imprisons people who are perfectly safe to release back into the community. In addition these sentences are disproportionately imposed on people of color. Please pass these necessary next steps in order to create a more just and equitable society.
I urge you to help us look for solutions that will benefit everyone–the incarcerated people and the general public. We have an opportunity to truly change how our society manages public safety. The creation of prisons has not only failed to end crime, by disconnecting people from their families, education, jobs and societal support, mass incarceration has actually been responsible for an increase in criminal infractions. Let’s be the state that shows how to end this cycle of incarceration and create solutions that really do lead to healing – of individuals and our community. Thank you for your time.
