“How Did It Come To This”

By: LaToya Cotton #40224-039

Today, in the Federal and State prisons are tens of thousands of females. They are incarcerated on charges of embezzlement, fraud, tax evasions, conspiracy, and a host of other money related crimes. The department of prisons has tens of thousand on waiting lists to be assigned a number and a bed. As one prisoner is released, two more are processed in.

They are publicly humiliated by the media. The government seizes everything of value, thus leaving many homeless. They are further humiliated by being forced to strip to nudity and commanded to present their now nude bodies to a prison guard in an undignified posture.

They are considered no longer a member of the human race. The money crimes are so unspeakable they deserve to be treated like an animal, so the judge, prosecutor, jury, and society seems to think. They put away the mother, daughter, grandmother, sister, and wife. They have lost Grace in their eyes.

These women are sent to a place that is not certifiable for human habitation, but who cares, they are animals after all. They are placed in a small space with twenty-five unfamiliar females from all walks of life and are expected to conform to rules that change daily from one authority figure to the next.

They enter the prisons as zombies, body, and mind. Finding their assigned bunk bed, they see the evidence of each previous resident by the deep impression in the mattress. They sit in a trance. Disbelief clouds their minds and the question slowly creeps in and starts to echo out their mouth, “How Did It Come To This?”

At that moment an answer is lacking. There is no rational thought or reasoning that can satisfy the question. No answer seems to justify the environment they have been place in. So they sit in a state of shock. Nothing can validate the crime warranting such a harsh reparation.

As they are punished, so are their children, husbands, fathers, and grandparents punished. Justice says, “You did this to them!”

Days, weeks, months, and for some years go by as the question contiubes to cloud their minds. They are seeking, debating, and analyzing, “How Did It Come To This?”

Mean while, the family unit starts to slowly come unraveled, coming apart because the magnet (that is the mother, daughter, grandmother, sister, and wife) that pulled and held everything together has been taken away. Society says she is unworthy to be free.

Still sitting on the bunk bed in the over crowed space in a building unfit to for house humans, the mind allows the truth to reveal itself. Many suggestions to the question presents themselves, such as: wanting to provide a better life for their children, wanting to care for a sick loved one, wanting to take care of debts that have gotten out of control, having a drug addiction, or gambling problem. This lost of possible answers goes on for each of them.

I will get around to reading the other writings soon. I will give you some feed back on the others as well. Tell Roberta I said hello, take care and I will talk to you soon.

One day, after soul searching comes the truth, the answer, the shame, the acceptance, it was “GREED”.

The Greed to wanting all the things the eyes saw on the television, in magazines,newspapers, and what they had seen others have.

The Greed of wanting to have biggest house. A house so big they were lost in it, and the distance from one another to have their quiet time, their private time to themselves.

The Greed to live a lifestyle they saw the rich and famous living. They were to impatient to wait and work harder to earn. The Greed to have that new expensive car that they would only drive on a dry warm day, the expensive clothes that ended up hanging in their oversized closets and the jewelry that lays in the chest protected from dust until that once a year affair provided an occasion to wear.

The Greed that allowed them to go stay at a world class resort for a month, to unwind but instead worried the whole time.

The Greed that kept them up nightly working and worrying about getting caught, or planning how to get more. Unable to stop themselves, addicted to the money and the challenge.

They were not able to see the big picture, the one picture that was the most important that was blurred by things, pressures, add responsibilities that they created trying to be the PROVIDER.

On the bunk bed in the overcrowded space in a building unfit for humans, the moment of acknowledgement begins. The true remorse is felt, and an understanding of the damage their actions have caused their children, husbands, siblings, parents, the-grandparents, and friends sinks in.

Only now can the question, “How Did It Come To This?” be honestly answered. Greed was what lead to the action. The real truth was, “a choice was made, “ whether it was based on poor judgment, shortsightness of consequences, failure to see the big picture, generational sin, or character flaw. NO, matter what the reason, the answer remains the same, “a choice was made”.

According to the US Government statistics there were over six hundred thousands females imprisoned by the end of 2005, and the number by 2006 had increased by 3.4% . This is the legal system’s answer to the problem. They put away the women ignoring the correlation between juvenile crimes, teenage pregnancies, high school drop-outs, students poor academic performances, the increase in the foster care system caseloads, the burden now ailing ill-equipped grandparents to be parents to their displace grandchildren. Not to for get the human and social service systems that are now overloaded and under funded.

There must be other measures that can be taken, short of imprisonment, for these first time offenders that can be punishable while preserving the family unit. Money crimes are addictions just as drugs are. Preventative measures and treatment are warranted in this area if society is recover from the epidemic. We must do something! There are fare too many families being torn apart, and the financial burden on the public is rising each year.

Do not become another number asking yourself “How Did It Come To This?" Those that have made a choice and have yet to be caught, stop now, the price is far to high. Those that may feel the temptation, maintain your integrity. Do the right thing!

Society must remember that prisoner sitting on the bunk bed, in the over crowed room, in the building unfit for humans, could be your mother mother, daughter, grandmother, sister, or wife. They too are human beings and deserve your compassion, under-standing, and s second chance. We all make poor choices and fall.

It is time to turn off the televisions, lay down the magazines and newspapers to focus on what is truly important……..Your family.

LaToya has submitted this to the US President (George W. Bush) and various senators, trying to push the bills through with encouraging words.

Written & submitted by: LaToya Cotton #40224-039 (BOP); PR Contact: Abagale Thompson; info@Retsofinc.com