America's Prisons | Inmate Chain Gangs Are an Improper Form of Punishment

Many people associate chain gangs with the abolished practice of African American enslavement. In the following viewpoint, Tracey L. Meares affirms this belief and argues that the use of chain gangs is a practice with racist roots. She also claims that it does not deter crime or reduce recidivism, is an expensive form of punishment that creates a gratuitous spectacle of shame, and threatens public safety. Finally, Meares contends that chain gangs are an outmoded form of punishment that should be replaced with more humane policies that provide inmates with education and rehabilitation....

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