Oppression can target incarcerated individuals in many different ways, but minority groups are particularly at risk for oppression via incarceration. Individuals who are gay, bisexual, or transgender are significantly overrepresented in the American criminal justice system, according to Moodie-Millis (2015). In the criminal justice system, transgendered individuals can be oppressed by a system that requires them to identify with their birth gender rather than their selected gender (Plushnick-Masti, 2013). The system can also lead to fear of “coming out” as gay or bisexual due to fear of reprisals by staff, officers, and other inmates in the institution (Plushnick-Masti, 2013).
When a community is treated badly by law enforcement, it has a tendency to become insular and fearful of law enforcement as a whole (Moodie-Millis, 2015). Insular and fearful behavior can sometimes lead to deviant, antisocial behavior as well, causing a self-perpetuating cycle of deviance, illegal behavior, and law enforcement targeting; this is what has been seen in many predominantly African-American communities, as well as in some Hispanic communities (Moodie-Millis, 2015).
The criminal justice professional that is concerned with the cycle of oppression can help individuals within the community in a number of ways. The first is just by providing good legal counsel to them—these individuals are often the target of inmates and guards, so they require extra protection. Protecting their civil rights should be the utmost goal, and to do this, the criminal justice professional has to hold the whole law enforcement system accountable. The criminal justice professional should also ensure that when necessary, they are helping gay, lesbian, or transgendered inmates navigate the correctional system safely by teaching them how to advocate for their rights.
References
Moodie-Millis, A. (2015). The Unfair Criminalization of Gay and Transgender Youth. name. Retrieved 28 June 2015, from https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/lgbt/report/2012/06/29/11730/the-unfair-criminalization-of-gay-and-transgender-youth/
Plushnick-Masti, R. (2013). Equality for LGBT Inmates at Harris County Jail - Texas Jail Project.Texas Jail Project. Retrieved 28 June 2015, from http://www.texasjailproject.org/2013/11/equality-for-lgbt-inmates-at-harris-county-jail/
