No one is marching for prisoners. Yet.

Millions of women give me hope today!

I have been in such a funk, worrying about my country.  For those who do not know me, my roots are in journalism, my first career in this lengthy term on earth.  I think that, by their very nature, reporters are a cynical bunch, but the developments in recent months have pushed me beyond cynicism. 

Then, in the depths of my despair, came the marches by women…not only in western Michigan, not only in our state, not only in major cities, not only in our nation’s capitol, but around the world!  I should know better than to let myself sink into those emotional pits, because in my long lifetime I have clearly seen these two things:  God remains in control, and good people will not be put down.

And that has me thinking this morning.

The threat of losing rights and losing freedoms has people marching in the streets, which is great.

But there’s a huge segment of our society where many of these rights and freedoms have already been taken away.  In fact, the number is over 2-million here in the United States. These are the people locked up in our county jails, state prisons and federal penitentiaries.  Here in Michigan the population of our state prison system alone is over 40,000.  Just ask their family members and their loved ones.  They have not only been placed behind bars for alleged crimes committed…they have been deprived of many of the basic rights and freedoms that we cherish.

Granted, as punishment for what the government says they did, they are restricted from running free in the streets, and going on with their lives in their homes and at their jobs.  But their lives are not their own any more.  They are not only restricted from regular behavior, they are finding serious bans on free speech.  Many claim they are not even allowed to think on their own.  The system will do the thinking for them.  Our system is creating a world of zombies, who, unless there is some strong intervention, will struggle like crazy if and when they are ever released!

No one really seems to notice or to care, unless they have someone actually in prison. 

Nobody is marching for them! 

I pray that someone will.

Comments

Unknown said…
Not only are inmates striped if rights, the guards make up their own set of "rules" for inmates to adhere to. There is no fighting back, for I tried and lost bad!!!! They all stick together
January 23, 2017 at 8:58 AM
Justice4Dan said…
Very true. Yet we can't give up.
January 25, 2017 at 1:24 AM
Bob Bulten said…
Keep it up, Doug. You are a lone voice in the wilderness of what I see as cruel and unusual punishment -- albeit done subtly enough to not appear so. Cindy's comment on
making up their own set of rules for inmates is so true.
January 25, 2017 at 1:01 PM
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