1. Describe at least three (3) similarities you see between the video and the article. Why are these similarities important?
2. What is the importance of the hashtag/octothorpe before #Gamergate? Would #PrisonLiteracy do the same work that #Gamergate did?
3. Are incarcerated bodies queer bodies?
Introduction to Women's Studies 
There are similarities between the video ,”Prison Literacy” , and the article, “The relationship between education and health among incarcerated men and women in the United States”, by Katherine M. Nowytny, Ryan K. Masters, and Jason D. Boardman. The article and video both focus on the well-being of the prison inn-mates, the future of the prisons, and the future of the prisoners.
The first similarity between the video and article is the focus on the well-being of the inn-mates. In the article, “The relationship between education and health among incarcerated women in the United States”, it is discussed that having an education can positively affect the health of incarcerated men and women. It includes education before and during incarceration.(1).For example, it is stated in the article that “For those men entering prison with at least a GED, their odds of lifetime hypertension are decreased by eight percent”(5). Also, it was stated that, “Men entering prison with less than a GED level of education who participate in a high school education program while in prison have 19% lower odds of reporting current problems with hypertension”(5). These examples prove that having an education can reduce the risks of getting hypertension thus signifying the importance of education for the inn-mates. The prisoners’ health and well-being is of importance. Similarly in the video, “Prison Literacy”, it is mentioned that reading impairment is the root cause of poverty. The State of Illinois Correctional facilities offer tutors for the inmates to help them break their cycles of poverty and imprisonment. Their focus is to help the inmates have a better future for themselves and the inmates’ well-being is of importance to them.
The second similarity has to do with the future of the prisoners. In the article, it is stated, “those who participate in high school education classes are more likely to also participate in a job training program”(4&5). This may suggest that participating in education classes in prison can increase the motivation and enthusiasm of the prisoners to want to have a good job and better future. Similarly in the video, there are tutors of the Centralia Correctional Center, some of which were former students, who explain their experiences. One man said that after getting his GED, he wanted to help others and be a positive influence . One of the former students expressed that his teachers’ belief and care for him, helped him believe in himself. There are former students as tutors for inmates; meaning they were actually in the inmates’ shoes at one point and are now in the position to teach and guide the inmates. It shows that the former prisoners were able to make a better future for themselves after receiving help from their tutors and after believing in themselves.
The third similarity is based upon the future of the prisons. The video and article both mention costs and reduced recidivism which is “the repeated or habitual relapse, as into crime”(Dictionary.com). In the article, it is mentioned that “inmates would receive Pell grants and pursue postsecondary education to create a fairer, more effective justice system, reduce recidivism, and combat the impact of mass incarceration on communities”, while also explaining that investments made to correctional education programs reduce re-incarnation costs.(Page 5). Similarly in the video, it is mentioned that “Reduced Recidivism also reduces the cost of prisons by over $400 million annually”(Prison Literacy). The article and video highlight positive cost effects and outcomes. Based on the article; pell grants and postsecondary education could lead to a cleaner life for the inmates, a better justice system, a better experience for future in-mates regarding correctional facilities, and a solution to mass incarceration. Based upon the video; when in-mates behave in a better manner and leave their criminal lives, it is financially positive for the prisons.
These similarities are important because it signifies that different prisons are focusing on similar problems regarding the well-being and future of prisoners and prisons. It could lead to better solutions and outcomes for prisons; especially if all the prisons united. It shows that similar problems have been identified and solutions can be made.
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Also, to add to the first similarity regarding the article and how education is associated with better health , it was stated in the article that “we contribute to a larger body of work linking educational attainment and adult health[1-3] in which individuals with higher levels of education report fewer chronic diseases, have better mental health, and enjoy longer lives than do adults with lower levels of eduction”(1). This serves as proof that education does positively affect health. Another example is”Yet all types of education programs available(i.e; GED, adult basic education, postsecondary, and vocational) notable reduce post-release recidivism”(6). That serves to prove that education classes help diminish criminal behavior.
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2. The controversy behind #Gamergate was a result of progressivism and sexism in the video game industry, stemming from a harassment campaign directed towards several women in the video game industry – mainly, Zoe Quinn and Brianna Wu. This arose due to the fact that the gaming industry is usually seen and perceived as a male dominated industry, in the broader context of the tech industry. Despite not having any official leaders and spokespeople, the controversy gained momentum over twitter which resulted in the aforementioned victims receiving death threats. Despite such backlash, the octothorpe #gamergate did achieve a goal by shedding light to the harassment and misogynistic behavior exhibited by fellow “gamers”. towards women. However, when compared to #prisonliteracy, both scenarios bear a slight similarity but a bigger difference. The similarities both situations share is that the hashtags are a way to shine a light and expose these social injustices to the masses via various social media platforms, however, they differ in various ways as well. For one, #gamergate specifically wanted to expose the underlying misogynistic behaviors towards women in the gaming industry whereas the main objective of #prisonliteracy was to highlight and compare the relationship between education and health among incarcerated men and women. Both hashtags achieved the same goal by drawing our attention to these issues but the issues in which they were referring to respectively differed on the demographic. The public health concerns of incarcerated men and women highlighted the imbalance of education-health association between men and women. Although men made up a majority of the prison population, the study found that women between the age range of 18-29 were at a higher risk of not having the adequate necessities to maintain proper hygiene, as a result of an on going budget shortage in for-profit prisons. In conclusion, both hashtags did achieve what they set out to do which was to raise awareness about both issues.
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#3 In the prison system the are mostly a lot of aggressive acts that goes on every day and acts wherein prisoners bodies are deemed as acts of violence, but for a heterosexual person, it shows how they are forced to become indicated to one sexual gender preference. The prison system forces inmates into a smaller environment and also in terms of identity categories. Incarcerated bodies can be considered queer bodies because once you enter the prison system you will often encounter sexual harassment which prison guards don’t seem to care much about, more so violent acts. This takes away from prisoners own characteristics and allowing them to be themselves around others. Inmates often go through stages of not understanding their own bodies while being surrounded by millions of other males. While incarcerated heterosexual men are sometimes afraid to accept the fact they have traits of a gay man or queer identifying. In an essay written by Grant Peterson and Eric Anderson named ” Queering masculine peer culture” it states ” According to foucault the dissemination of gender and sexual norms are not only from the top-down, but are formed by complex matrix of power relations between individuals and institutions , homophobia of power relations between individuals and institutions. Homophobia and sexism then, are forms of official and self-regulatory powers which aim to segregate and relegate gender and sexuality.” Therefore heterosexual males who enter the prison system really don’t have a choice anymore but to confide within the acts that goes in inside prisons making them queer bodies.
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The video states that there are higher rates to obtain a GED in the incarcerated world than there is in the non carcerated world, the similarity to the article proves that both men and women attempt to change when they face punishment rather than when they go about their everyday lives in the free world . In the world, people rather live their life uneducated because they are not restricted to freedom and prefer to learn when they have nothing else to do. Although the video focus on men, the number of illiterate women in the world who have not completed high school diplomas is equal to the arrest rate of uneducated men , thus proving men uneducated get arrested just as often as women neglect high school diplomas. That last similarity is between the women who attempt to become educated and men between the ages of 18-24 that get arrested who are uneducated l. Although women get GEDs they are still arrested with more than 3 health conditions versus men who have 2 or less Heath conditions with no GED pursued untill they are arrested. This information is important when considering the health care provided to men and women incarcerated. Men report less involvement with some STDs than women but more GEDs are obtained in jail. Thus Proving, both men and women with Healy conditions see no importance in learning untill it is the only thing they are able to do.
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2) The importance of the Hashtag of #Gamergate is to simply make a struggle go viral so that more people will research it and be aware of it. Gamergate is the movement that brings up the struggles that women face on a daily basis in the video game world. Whether it is producing games themselves or even being in video games. These struggles are seen through the countless threats that female video game producers receive from online trolls. Similarly, #PrisonLiteracy would bring up the point and statistics to back up the notion that incarcerated women have lower education programs inside the prisons along with worse health programs. This is illustrated in the article written by Kathryn Nowotny, titled “The relationship between education and health among incarcerated men and women in the United States” when it is stated that “40.5% [of women in prison with less than a GED] participated in a high school education program with 16.9% of participants obtaining a GED” (Nowotny 4). This shows that less than half of those women in prison even enter classes for their education. That could be because they believe that it is not even worth their time to do so. In the health aspect of prison, “incarcerated women have worse health and complex comorbid conditions across multiple domains compared to men” (Nowotny 1). These health conditions are not varied in one category, but in multiple as illustrated in the quote. For example, women have a hygiene difference over men in getting their period. If not treated properly through clean resources, this could cause many diseases and infections. In terms of the health aspect, female prisons should receive more funding as women bodies require more attentive care.
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The article and video addresses the importance of education in the lives of incarcerated inmates. Both references suggests that with education, a prisoner is able to take charge of their own future in order to gain an economic advancement. Recidivism, a person’s relapse into criminal behavior, declines through the use of correctional educational programs. The relationship between recidivism and educational attainment generally point to reduced recidivism and better preparation for transition back into their communities. The video included testimonials of several inmates that were positively affected by participating in such classes. One inmate testified that the obtainment of his GED granted him confidence in which he used to help others. Since someone provided the help that he needed for his own personal growth, he feels the need to assist others. “Inmates helping inmates is substantially increasing the likelihood of these inmates “breaking their cycle of poverty” and imprisonment”. Likewise, the article notes that the “benefits in the prison experiences for inmates who participate in prison education classes including greater external social support and lower likelihood of receiving a violation.” (7). The attainment of education for prison inmates is essential to their mental health. They are able to positively influence others around them while also enjoying their lives. Both sources include a call of action for prisons regarding education. Since prison education results in many benefits for both the individual and community, basic education should then be expanded.
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Work cited: https://www.thenation.com/article/prison-education-reduces-recidivism-by-over-40-percent-why-arent-we-funding-more-of-it/
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3.
Yes, incarcerated bodies are queer bodies. Both incarcerated men and women fall into the “queer category” because they are outlaws and seen as low lives. Since they are in prison and since majority of them either did not finish high school or got their GED in prison, they are degraded and not seen as part of the community and regular citizens. Like queered people, incarcerated men and women are different and unusual, but also, their freedom and rights are taken from them. For example, when gay or lesbian couples show affection in front of other heterosexuals, they are disgusted and think of them as a disgrace. Same goes for the incarcerated men and women; since they committed a crime they are presumably bad people with bad intentions. In the article “The relationship between education and health among incarcerated men and women in the United States,” by Kathryn M. Nowotny, she states that because of the explicit focus on noninstitutionalized populations, little is known about the health benefits of education among female and male prisoners. Female and male prisoners are being neglected because of the environment they are in, so when they are finished with their sentencing, they cannot integrate back into the community when they cannot read and write basic English. Incarcerated bodies are queer bodies because they are dissimilar from the rest of the “normal” population, and even when they get health benefits of education, their status probably still won’t change.
Works Cited
Kathryn Nowotny, R. K. (n.d.). Retrieved December 12, 2016, from https://womensstudiesrutgersnewark.files.wordpress.com/2016/09/the-relationship-between-education-and-health-among-incarcerated-men-and-women-in-the-united-states.pdf
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2. According to an article by Gawker, the gamergate hashtag that began with the harassment of a female gamer, is “ostensibly concerned with ethics in game journalism and with protecting the ‘gamer’ identity” (gawker.com/what-is-gamergate-and-why-an-explainer-for-non-geeks). The article describes the term as a “response to this widespread repudiation of the term “gamer” and the scummy layer of misogyny it had picked up”. Users of the hashtag are concerned journalism in gaming is corrupt now because “there are too many writers who maintain friendships or other close relationships with game developers” (“What is Gamergate and Why: An Explainer for Non Geeks). According to the article, the hashtag has been relatively successful in its goal.
A hashtag for prison literacy could also be effective. Prison literacy, as the video explains it aims to the break cycle of poverty and recidivism. Many prisoners have reading impairments. Prison literacy will empower inmates to take control of their lives and escape poverty and crime. Donations will fund the payment of tutors who will tutor the inmates with reading impairments. If the issue is popularized through the hashtag, and more people are aware of the problem, then more people will donate for the cause. I think a hashtag for prison literacy would be even more effective than the hashtag for gamergate was. #Prisonliteracy would not be a movement that would make some groups feel marginalized. It would be a movement of doing good: just getting prison inmates up to speed with their literacy skills.
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The relationship between education and health among incarcerated men and women in the US. The study examines whether level of education prior to imprisonment and participation in prison education program are associated with better health for male and female inmates.indidividuals with higher levels of education report fewer chronic diseases, have better mental health and enjoy longer lives than adults with lower levels of education. Education will be more strongly associated with health among more disadvantaged population, such as women relative to men, because education can serve as a substitute for the limited resources among this group. The female prison population has been increasing at a higher rate than male prison population, incarcerated women have worse health and complex comorbid condition compared to men .examining sex differences in the relationship between education healths among prisoners is important because it provides additional insight into the nature of the association. Improved health may be an additional benefit through potential increase in learned effectiveness health literacy and ability to engage in health promotion, all of which has the potential to improve community health. Benefits in the prison experiences for inmates who participate in prison education classes including greater external social support and lower likelihood of receiving a violation. The identified health promotion needs of prisoners include education in health and empowerment support in adopting health behavior, development of life skills and education related to specific illnesses. Provision of primary and secondary education to prisoners may be an important element for health promotion and increasing the life chances and longevity of prisoners after they are released back to their communities.
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Both the article “The relationship between education and health among incarcerated men and women in the United States” and video”Prison Literacy ” talk about the importance of education in the lives of incarnated men and women. In the videos, clips of interview with different inmates that participated in the peer education programs and they talked about how they were affected by this in a positive way. One inmate said that he started to have more confidence in himself because he noticed that others started to care. The article points out that individuals that participate in this program have ” greater external social support and lower likelihood of receiving a violation.” Because of this help and support they are more likely to be open and want to help others in a non violent way. Another similarity that was shown , is the furture and well being of these inmates. The article mentions that those who were more active in high school and participated in high school classes are more like to participate in job training program. In relation to the video, one inmate said that after taking the classes , it made him want to help others and become a positive influence amongst his peers. Participating in the inmate programs gives them the motivation to want to have a good job and be a better person when they are released, in the same way that participating in high school classes gives you the confidence and motivation to want to do well after getting your diploma. The 3rd similarity that i noticed is based on the future of prisons and the peer learning programs. The video ends with talking about donating money to correctional facilities to help pay the inmates that tutor their peers 20 cents an hour. In the article, the author mentions that the Obama administration and the department of education announced a program to allow inmates to receive a pell grant to pursue a post secondary education ( college ) . This will possibly “ create a fairer, more effective criminal justice system, reduce recidivism, and combat the impact of mass incarceration on communities”. for every dollar that would be invested into these programs, five dollars are saved on re-incarceration costs. according to the video, ‘ reduced recidivism reduces costs to law enforcement , the court system, general public and should reduce the costs of prisons by over $400 million annually . ”
I believe that these similarities are important because it shows that this was a problem that many prisons and correctional facilities were facing around the country and this program may be a solution to help both the inmates and the prisons. the inmates will leave the prisons and be released back into the free world with more confidence and be more sociable and also ready to want to want work , while on the other hand the prisons will be saving a lot of money for different costs.
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1.In both the article “The Relationship Between Education and Health Among Incarcerated Men and Women in the United States” and video “Prison Literacy” talks about the education for inmates and how this education can help them. The first similarity between the video and the article are both talk about how the incarcerated men benefit from the high school education classes in jail. While these men are incarcerated they have the opportunity to get their GED. Men that get their GED are more likely to participate in job training programs which could be good for their future. Now that they have an education with the GED it is most likely they get a job once they get out of jail. The job training programs prepares them for a future job. The article says, “almost half of them participated in high school education classes…They are more likely to also participate in a job training program”(4). This demonstrates that these education classes help the inmates not only in jail but also once they get out. The second similarity seen is both talk about the money that could be saved by investing in the education system for the inmates. The video talks about how reducing an inmate’s criminal behavior can save the government money. The government can save because by providing education to the inmate’s they can change their criminal behavior; which means they most likely will not end up in prison again. Inmates staying out of prison saves money because the state no longer has to waist money on them in court, with law enforcements, and other things. The video says, “Reduced recidivism also reduces the cost to law enforcement, the court system, the general public, and should reduce the cost of prisons by over $400 million annually.” Saving money demonstrates that the education programs really helps the inmates and the economy. Also in the article it says, “for every dollar invested in correctional education programs, four to five dollars are saved on three year re-incarceration cost”(5). Reducing the incarceration cost highlights the fact that these programs help the inmates stay out of jail and saves the government money.The last similarity seen in the article and video is both want to educate society that if we work together to help the inmate’s we can help better their future. In the article it says, “Our results support the notion that the provision of primary and secondary education to prisoners may be an important element for health promotion and increasing the life chances of prisoners after they are released back to their communities”(7). Giving education to the inmates can help them succeed later in life and also give them a chance to live a longer life. The inmates might live a longer life because it is less likely they go back to their old habits and it’s more likely they stick to what they learned in jail. Also in the video they talks about how we are all changing the world and by giving we receive. This shows that by giving the inmates an education as a society we will receive a better future. These similarities are important because it demonstrate that the lives of these inmates could change with the education programs provided to them. Another reason these similarities are important is because it educates society that many people are providing education programs to inmates and these programs are helping their future. When other people see that the programs are helping the people in jail then they might also get the educational program as well.
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Yes, incarcerated bodies should be considered as queer bodies in the sense that both groups have been marginalized in society. These two group are seen as outsiders and people who choose to exclude themselves from the norm and because of the differences these marginalized group are often faced with either sexual violence or physical violence. Queer bodies often face the threat of either physical violence or sexual violence from familiar places such as school and work. Even queer structures like clubs and organizations are at risk for attacks. Incarcerated bodies also faced threats of violence, but on a more localized scale. Obviously, these the acts of violence towards prisoners is behind bars so that creates a tense and hostile living environment for inmates. There is no safe space for incarcerated bodies. There is no sense of respect towards incarcerated bodies and queer bodies. No sense of care for their well being. Education is something that is not seen as valuable for these groups. There are transgender teenagers that get kicked out of school because they of the way they choose to represent themselves. As for inmates education is necessary for proper reform. As the article states, “for every dollar invested in correctional education programs, four to five dollars are saved on three year re-incarceration costs” (Nowotny, Masters, Boardman). Education seems like a simple solution to America’s rapidly growing prison population problem, but since the money for education would go towards inmates the general public is uninterested and that apathy also translates to queer bodies.
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3. I believe incarcerated bodies are queer bodies. This is because incarcerated as well as queer bodies receive the same mistreatment. Like queer bodies, Incarcerated bodies are ignored of their full experience in society. Queer politics strenuously argues for acceptance but nothing seems to change, like imprisoned bodies. Incarcerated bodies also feel neglected when it come to the fact of the community in a whole. Queer bodies believe its homosexual vs. heterosexual; Incarcerated feel like it’s the prison vs. the community. There are also false sentiments against queer and incarcerated bodies. For example, there’s a term called “straight queers” which are those who don’t necessarily fit into conceptions of being a queer; just like incarcerated people there’s “educated imprisoned people” who are supposedly too smart to be in jail. So, in other words there incarcerated bodies go through the same judgment as queer bodies, therefore incarcerated bodies and queer bodies are similar.
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The relationship between education and health among incarcerated men and women in the US. The study examines whether level of education prior to imprisonment and participation in prison education program are associated with better health for male and female inmates.indidividuals with higher levels of education report fewer chronic diseases, have better mental health and enjoy longer lives than adults with lower levels of education. Education will be more strongly associated with health among more disadvantaged population, such as women relative to men, because education can serve as a substitute for the limited resources among this group. The female prison population has been increasing at a higher rate than male prison population, incarcerated women have worse health and complex comorbid condition compared to men .examining sex differences in the relationship between education healths among prisoners is important because it provides additional insight into the nature of the association. Improved health may be an additional benefit through potential increase in learned effectiveness health literacy and ability to engage in health promotion, all of which has the potential to improve community health. Benefits in the prison experiences for inmates who participate in prison education classes including greater external social support and lower likelihood of receiving a violation. The identified health promotion needs of prisoners include education in health and empowerment support in adopting health behavior, development of life skills and education related to specific illnesses. Provision of primary and secondary education to prisoners may be an important element for health promotion and increasing the life chances and longevity of prisoners after they are released back to their communities.
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William Haley a British Editor says, “Education would be more important and effective if children by the time they leave school would be able to tell how much they don’t know, and this would create the eager to know it.” The discussion tries to show the importance of education for health among the confined adults. Many research’s conducted have shown the importance of the inmates’ education, that is usually extended to the whole community. In 2015 the US administration and department of education announced a Second Change Pell Pilot Program which allowed the prisoners to pursue a post-secondary education. By having such programs it will assist reduce the level of crime and incarceration thus having an impact on the rate of illiteracy. The studies also shows that having an improvement in health services will contribute towards elimination of health illiteracy which gears to the promotion and improvement in community health. The findings from the studies shows the relationship between education and health to the community, this poses a challenge to the researchers to try and find more relationships between this two and how they may operate. This is of importance because incarcerated people are usually vulnerable, disadvantaged and mostly unhealthy in the US population who are mostly marginalized in the society. Therefore incarcerated people are mostly the queer people who are usually disadvantaged and hopeless in the society.
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1. “Prison Literacy” and “The relationship between education and health among incarcerated men and women in the United States” both analyze the connections between education and health (physical and mental), lowering recidivism rates, and ignite a hope for the future of prisons. Unfortunately, the prison system in the United States is punitive, focusing more on the punishment of inmates rather than their rehabilitation. Because of this, inmates are likely to suffer from mental and physical ailments as authors Kathryn M. Nowotny, Ryan K. Masters and Jason D. Boardman point out. “Women’s prisons have lower programming availability [13], often struggle to meet the healthcare needs of the prisoners [13, 14], have higher exposure
to sexual violence [15], and women have specific healthcare needs that are not always provided for in prisons” (1). The motivation for women in prison to learn is low because their stresses about their health and personal safety matter more. Prisoners already feel as if the world does not care for them, so when their healthcare needs are not met, their education will also be lacking. In the case of the video, an inmate talks about his feeling of satisfaction when other inmates catch on to reading. “The moment when you see a guy catching on”. The inmate recalling this feeling recalls the memory with a smile, some sentiment of happiness that relates mental health back to education.
Additionally, both pieces point out that education lowers recidivism rates. The video states “Inmates helping inmates is substantially increasing the likelihood of these inmates ‘breaking their cycle of poverty’ and imprisonment.” This means of education offers inmates the freedom to see that they have more options and not subjected to an eternal live of jailing and poverty. Similarly, the article states “A comprehensive meta-analysis found that GED programs are the most common education programs in prison, yet all types of education programs available (i.e., GED, adult basic education, postsecondary, and vocational) notably reduce postrelease recidivism.” This goes back to the perspective of giving inmates the freedom of more options. Education whether it be reading, a GED, or even vocational training gives inmates the opportunity to work past their time in prison.
Furthermore, both pieces address hope and direct a light towards the future with education in prisons. Authors Nowotny, Masters, and Boardman say “Our results support the notion that the provision of primary and secondary education to prisoners may be an important element for health promotion and increasing the life chances and longevity of prisoners after they are released back to their communities.” Basically, to improve inmates’ stand of living in and out of prison, education improves their health. Similarly, the video quotes Economic Justice for All -NCCN who says,”Personal motivation and initiative, combined with social reform are necessary elements to assist individuals in escaping poverty.” It is this social reform, of regulating education in all prisons that will help inmates escape poverty and give them a sense of their humanity back.
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2) #GamerGate got its name from the movement in the online gaming community about the ethics of video game journalism, and what it means to identify as a gamer. The movement spans over a large portion of the gaming industry, including game development, design, or the players. Many women endure hardships in these online communities, such as Anita Sarkeesian and Brianna Wu, who have received numerous amounts of death threats. Some of these threats became way to personal and real, so much so that they had to move to a new home. What the hashtag does for GamerGate is help make it a trending term on social media platforms such as twitter. At the time when GamerGate was more relevant, the hashtag enabled more people to become aware of the trending topic. Whether or not #PrisonLiteracy would catch on or not is solely dependent of whether it is relevant to a mass amount of people or not. The community of gaming is huge and widespread all over the internet, making it easy conversation online. If some random person started using #PrisonLiteracy it may or may not catch on with a small amount of people. The best way for it to spread would be if it was noticed and used by a type of celebrity online to give it attention. It could work, if relevant and spread by the right people.
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