Neil A. Weiner Research Speaker Series

#SayHerName: The Health Consequences of Mass Imprisonment for (Black) Women

Tuesday, September 20 2016, 12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Vera Institute of Justice
233 Broadway, 12th Floor, New York City

REGISTER HERE

In this Neil A. Weiner Research Speaker Series event, Professor Hedwig (Hedy) Lee of the University of Washington in Seattle, will present a discussion of a book project which examines the possible impact of mass imprisonment on the health and social well-being of women and on health disparities. The talk will highlight some of the preliminary results on the qualitative component of the book from interviews with women on the East and West coasts of the United States.

Since the early 1970s, the American imprisonment rate has increased dramatically from a modest 100 per 100,000 to a comparatively and historically extreme 500 per 100,000. Because the risk of imprisonment is concentrated among young, African American men with low levels of education, scholars have developed an interest in the consequences of mass imprisonment for inequality. Missing from this literature, however, is an analysis of how mass imprisonment affects the health and wellbeing of the predominantly poor and minority women who routinely deal with the absence of their husbands, fathers, and brothers. Poor and minority women, particularly African American women, face markedly higher rates of chronic diseases, such as obesity and diabetes, and poor mental health compared to other demographic groups.