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  • Essay / Creating gender equity within the prison system...

    Women's inequality exists at all levels of Canadian society. The “unequal distribution of power, wealth, and privilege between men and women,” or gender stratification (Macionis, Jansson, & Benoit, 2009, p. 256), has created an entrenched patriarchal system in society Canadian. Such a system gives men more power and privileges over women (Hiller, 2006). Disparities in opportunities between women and men in Canada go beyond the usual contexts (workplace, family and/or politics); gender inequality is most visible in the Canadian prison system (Dell, Fillmore, & Kilty, 2009). It is a fact that in all societies, women are subject to stricter normative control than men, thereby reinforcing patriarchal domination of the world as a whole (Macionis et al., 2006). In a penal system initially designed to punish male offenders, women are constantly reminded of the role they are expected to play in society; that is, of a submissive and passive individual (Parkes & Pate 2006). This article argues that the Canadian penal system is designed to preserve the domination of men over women, directly affecting the conditions of female prisoners. In fact, patriarchy is so ingrained in Canadian society that it affects the entire incarceration process. The existence of patriarchy in the process of women's imprisonment shapes their expected behavior as women and prisoners; it creates an acceptable definition of crime in which women are excluded or sensationalized; this weakens their ability to overcome abuse in the penal system and undermines social programs that could help improve their prison sentence (Dell et al., 2009; Parkes and Pate, 2006; Pollar and Brezina, 2006). Canada is generally perceived by the international community as a country...... middle of article ......70(03), 1041-1041.Macionis JJ, Jansson SM & Benoit CM (2009) . Society: the basics. Toronto, Ontario. Prentice HallMonster, M. and Micucci, A. (2005). Addressing rehabilitation needs in a Canadian correctional center for women. The Prison Journal, 85(2), 168-185. Parkes, D. and Pate, K. (2006). It's time for accountability: effective oversight of women's prisons. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice/Revue Canadienne De Criminologie Et De Justice Penale, 48(2), 251-285.Pollack, S. and Brezina, K. (2006). Negotiating contradictions: counseling women in prison on sexual abuse. Women and Therapy, 29(3-4), 117-133. Yuen, F. (2009). Walking the Red Road: Federally Sentenced Indigenous Women's Experiences of Healing, Empowerment, and Recreation. Dissertation Abstracts International, A: The human and social sciences, 69(11), 4479-4479..