The Prison and the Gallows: The Politics of Mass Incarceration in America (Cambridge Studies in Criminology)

Over the last three decades the United States has built a carceral state that is unprecedented among Western countries and in US history. Nearly one in 50 people, excluding children and the elderly, is incarcerated today, a rate unsurpassed anywhere else in the world. What are some of the main political forces that explain this unprecedented reliance on mass imprisonment? Throughout American history, crime and punishment have been central features of American political development. This book examines the development of four key movements that mediated the construction of the carceral state in important ways: the victims' movement, the women's movement, the prisoners' rights movement, and opponents of the death penalty. This book argues that punitive penal policies were forged by particular social movements and interest groups within the constraints of larger institutional structures and historical developments that distinguish the United States from other Western countries. Over The Last Three Decades, The United States Has Built A Carceral State That Is Unprecedented Among Western Countries, With Nearly One In 50 Adult Americans Incarcerated Today. This Book Examines The Development Of The Movements That Mediated The Construction Of The Carceral State. The Prison And The Gallows : The Construction Of The Carceral State In America -- Law, Order, And Alternative Explanations -- Unlocking The Past : The Nationalization And Politicization Of Law And Order -- The Carceral State And The Welfare State : The Comparative Politics Of Victims -- Not The Usual Suspects : Feminists, Women's Groups, And The Anti-rape Movement -- The Battered Women's Movement And The Development Of Penal Policy -- From Rights To Revolution : Prison Activism And The Carceral State -- Capital Punishment, The Courts, And The Early Origins Of The Carceral State, 1920s-1960s -- The Power To Punish And Execute : The Political Development Of Capital Punishment, 1972 To Today -- Whither The Carceral State?. Marie Gottschalk. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 379-427) And Index. Frontmatter List of Figures and Table (page x) Preface and Acknowledgments (page xi) 1. The Prison and the Gallows: The Construction of the Carceral State in America (page 1) 2. Law, Order, and Alternative Explanations (page 18) 3. Unlocking the Past: The Nationalization and Politicization of Law and Order (page 41) 4. The Carceral State and the Welfare State: The Comparative Politics of Victims (page 77) 5. Not the Usual Suspects: Feminists, Women's Groups, and the Anti-Rape Movement (page 115) 6. The Battered-Women's Movement and the Development of Penal Policy (page 139) 7. From Rights to Revolution: Prison Activism and the Carceral State (page 165) 8. Captial Punishment, the Courts, and the Early Origins of the Carceral State, 1920s-1960s (page 197) 9. The Power to Punish and Execute: The Political Development of Capital Punishment, 1972 to Today (page 216) 10. Conclusion: Whither the Carceral State? (page 236) Notes (page 265) Select Bibliography (page 379) Index (page 429) The United States has built a carceral state that is unprecedented among Western countries and in US history. Nearly one in 50 people, excluding children and the elderly, is incarcerated today, a rate unsurpassed anywhere else in the world. What are some of the main political forces that explain this unprecedented reliance on mass imprisonment? Throughout American history, crime and punishment have been central features of American political development. This 2006 book examines the development of four key movements that mediated the construction of the carceral state in important ways: the victims' movement, the women's movement, the prisoners' rights movement, and opponents of the death penalty. This book argues that punitive penal policies were forged by particular social movements and interest groups within the constraints of larger institutional structures and historical developments that distinguish the United States from other Western countries. The prison and the gallows : the construction of the carceral state in America Law, order, and alternative explanations Unlocking the past : the nationalization and politicization of law and order The carceral state and the welfare state : the comparative politics of victims Not the usual suspects : feminists, women's groups, and the anti-rape movement The battered women's movement and the development of penal policy From rights to revolution : prison activism and penal policy Capital punishment, the courts, and the early origins of the carceral state, 1920s-1960s The power to punish : the political development of capital punishment, 1972 to today Whither the carceral state.