Abstract
The aim of this paper is to critically engage with the idea that Therapeutic Communities (TCs) can be promoted in England and Wales as a radical alternative to prison for substance users who have broken the law. After grounding the discussion within the normative framework of an ‘abolitionist real utopia’ (Scott 2013), the article explores the historical and theoretical underpinnings of TCs. Existing literature advocating TCs as a radical alternative both before and instead of prison is then reviewed, followed by a critical reflection of the TCs compatibility with the broader values and principles of an abolitionist real utopia. To conclude, the article suggests that, although TCs could be a plausible and historically immanent non-penal real utopia for certain people in certain circumstances, we must not lose focus of wider social inequalities.
Highlights
Prisons are profoundly dehumanising institutions filled with socially disadvantaged people who have experienced multiple forms of social exclusion
Radical alternatives must be able to incorporate both an engagement with the problems and possibilities of our historical moment, whilst simultaneously disrupting punitive and other ideologies which facilitate social inequalities. They must be genuine alternatives – that is, they must be before a prison sentence; instead of a prison sentence; and better than a prison sentence – for only when coupled with policies promoting social inclusion and social justice can they meet the criteria of an abolitionist real utopia (Scott 2013)
At that point we evaluate whether Therapeutic Communities (TCs) are compatible with the values and principles of an abolitionist real utopia
Summary
Prisons are profoundly dehumanising institutions filled with socially disadvantaged people who have experienced multiple forms of social exclusion. We need plausible and historically immanent radical alternatives that can reach beyond hegemonic neo‐liberal and penal logics currently informing policy, and offer a new way of responding to troubled individuals Such radical alternatives must engender both the humanitarian impulse to engage with the tragedies of imprisonment and social injustice, and be something that maintains fidelity with, and commitment to, the wider idealised aspirations of living in a world without prisons and the deep‐seated social inequalities they mirror. Radical alternatives must be able to incorporate both an engagement with the problems and possibilities of our historical moment, whilst simultaneously disrupting punitive and other ideologies which facilitate social inequalities They must be genuine alternatives – that is, they must be before a prison sentence; instead of a prison sentence; and better than a prison sentence – for only when coupled with policies promoting social inclusion and social justice can they meet the criteria of an abolitionist real utopia (Scott 2013). The article concludes that, whilst there is no blanket alternative to prison, and no single answer to the way society responds to lawbreakers whose offending behaviour is influenced by substance use, TCs can be part of the solution, but they must be coupled with other interventions tackling structural inequalities grounded in the principles of social justice
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