Prisons: Past vs. Present

WARNING!!!! YOU MUST BE COMPLETELY SILENT OR THERE WILL BE DEVASTATING CONSEQUENCES…

REMAIN SILENT!!!! THIS IS WHAT IT WAS LIKE IF YOU WERE IN EASTERN STATE PENITENTIARY.

THE PAST

Introduction to the prison:

When you were brought into Eastern State and many other prisons in the past, you had a bag placed over your head. You were not allowed to see any part of the prison besides your cell and your exercise yard. While in the prison you were in your cell 23 hours a day 7 days a week, COMPLETELY SILENT.

Your Day at the prison:

You were in solitary confinement and you had 1 hour a day out in your exercise yard. You talked and the first punishment you got was that your light in your cell was turned off. It will only escalate from there so don’t think about talking. Plus the only things that you got were a bible, a bed, a toilet that doesn’t flush, and some clothes and shoes.

PUNISHMENTS:

The Water Bath: You were hung out in the exercise yard by your wrists and ice cold water was slowly poured over you periodically. When you were brought back in, layers of ice were all over you.

The Mad Chair: This meant that you were strapped to a chair very tightly. Most of the time your hands and feet were black because the circulation was cut off.

PUNISHMENTS CONT.

The Iron Gag: A razor attached to chains that were cuffed around your hands that were behind your back. The razor was placed in your mouth and if you moved at all it would cut your tongue apart.

The Hole: This was literally a hole in the ground and people were put in there. You were given a slice of bread and water, and you’d better eat it fast before the rats and roaches get it.

Back in the day it was mostly about punishment and that was not a good thing. The people that were in prison back then were treated very inhumanely and that was not a way to treat people no matter what they did. It was just cruel.

THE PRESENT

LUXURIES

Nowadays people have flushing toilets!!!!!!

Also the prisons are more about rehabilitation than punishment.

Prisoners are allowed to see people and the prison itself. That means they are brought in without a bag on their head.

BETTER FOR SOCIETY

Not only is it more humane to the prisoners now, it is also is better for society.

In prisons now they are all about making people better so that they can be put back into society. That means that they teach the prisoners better so they will probably not be crazy when they go back into society. People back then often went crazy, and that is really not good for society.

You are now free to talk. I hope you enjoyed your travel through time from past to present.

This was brought to you by: Maddy Waugh and Tristen Watchinski