General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: 30 Percent of California's Forest Firefighters Are Prisoners [View all]Xithras
(16,191 posts)I taught some classes at a Columbia College in Sonora for a few years, and we used to get some of these guys straight out of prison (Columbia has a fairly well known degree and training program for firefighters). They'd get sentenced for something (typically theft or drug dealing, in my experience), end up volunteering with CalFire and fall in love with the work. When they got out of prison they'd enroll in the college to work on a Fire Technology or a wildland fire management degree, with the idea that it would get them into the field permanently. They were some of my most motivated students, and I had a blast talking with them and teaching them. A few of those guys, and the long conversations I had with them, really changed my views toward prisons and prison life.
I actually do understand the concerns brought up by activists, but the very real benefits of the program, and the desire of the prisoners themselves to keep the program going, should outweigh any conceptual issues. Unless an actual pattern of real world abuse can be found in the program, the rehabilitative good it brings to their lives should be our first priority.