FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 14, 2018
All Women Deserve to be Treated with Human Dignity; Even Those Who Are Pregnant
Alexandria, VA – The American Conservative Union(“ACU”)Foundation commendsthe work ofReps. Mia Love (R-UT) and Karen Bass (D-CA) forauthoring H.R. 6805, theProtecting the Health and Wellness of Babies and Pregnant Women in Custody Act,which was introduced today in the US House of Representatives.As a conservative organizationwith a focuson improving the criminal justice systemfor all, we arepleased to see thispositive step towards affording every woman in prison a degree of basic human dignity – something that is often lost in a system designed for men.
ACU’s General Counsel and Deputy Director of theACUFCenter for Criminal Justice Reform, David Safavianexplained:“As conservatives, we believe every life has value. The Love-Bass legislation ensures that expectant mothers are provided everything necessary for a safe pregnancy and a healthy delivery, even if they are behind bars.Nothing is more pro-life than that.”
Women are the fastest growing population in our federal prison system. The number of women behind bars in the United States has increased by more than 700% since the 1980s, nearly double the rate at which the male population has grown. As a result, the United States is home to approximately 30% of all of the world’s incarcerated women. Unfortunately, the unique needs and challenges of incarcerated women are often left out of conversations about criminal justice reform.
TheProtecting the Health and Wellness of Babies and Pregnant Women in Custody Actwould address pregnancy-related needs of incarcerated women. In addition to providing access to prenatal and post-delivery care and support to pregnant and postpartum inmates, training and technical assistance would be provided to correctional staff to ensure compliance. State incentives wouldalsobe provided to further support the overall goals of the legislation.
One key provision deals with thedegradingpractice of shackling pregnant women during pregnancy and delivery. Unbelievably, this heinous practice still happens far too often inside our prisons. The use of shacklesand restraintscan cause injuries to mothers and their babies, including physical trauma due to falls, increased pain during labor from bone separation and muscle tears, blocked circulation, and miscarriage.
“This barbaric practice of shacklingserves no purpose other than humiliating and endangering both the mother and child. There have beenno reported cases of pregnant women leaping off the gurney, while in labor, and managing toescape with an armed guard present in the room. It is absurd to think this would ever happen,” explained Pat Nolan, Director of the ACUF Center for Criminal Justice Reform.
Kaitlin Owens, a policy analyst at ACUF, added:“It’s unfortunate to think thatour prison system needs to be told to ‘treat human beings as human beings.’ While there is much to do to improve our prisons to make our communities safer,preservingdignityof incarcerated mothers and theirnewbornis a great first step.”
As conservatives, we believe it is possible to be tough on crime, while recognizing that each person has inherent value. The principles underlying theProtecting the Health and Wellness of Babies and Pregnant Women in Custody Actwill help to preserve the human dignity of justice-involved womenandkeeptheirnewborn children safe and healthy,allwhile achieving more positive results for families throughout the country.
Our mission at the American Conservative Union Foundation is to educate Americans about conservative solutions to the country’s most pressing problems. ACUF’s Center for Criminal Justice Reform promotes policies that improve public safety, reduce government cost, and protect human dignity. Criminal Justice Reform is a high priority for ACUF, and it has been highlighted at each of ACUF’s Conservative Political Action Conferences (CPAC) for over a decade.
For more information on the ACUF Center for Criminal Justice Reform, please go towww.ConservativeJusticeReform.com.
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CONTACT: David Safavian orKaitlin Owens at(202) 347-9388