No longer a ‘collateral consequence’: Imprisonment and the reframing of citizenship

Abstract

This article examines the impact of imprisonment on citizenship. It identifies how civil, political and social rights are circumscribed with a sentence of imprisonment, and scrutinizes to what extent citizenship is limited for prisoners. Drawing on recent developments in England and Wales, it contends that citizenship has been eroded, not as a ‘collateral consequence’ of imprisonment, but rather as a determined penal policy. The boundaries of punishment have become blurred, moving from criminal justice institutions, and extending towards what is termed civil and political penality. Finally, it argues that, because citizenship in prison is inevitably framed around the differences between freedom and captivity, prisoners respond to the constraints of imprisonment through alternative ways of expressing their citizenship.

Anticipated citizenship in the shadow of imprisonment

“…Miller and Stuart (2017: 533) argue that a new, alternative citizenship category exists, that of ‘carceral citizenship’, created as ‘the advent of new laws, sanctions and regulatory penalties, numbering in the tens of thousands shaped the social, civic and political participation of people with criminal records’. While much literature on such restrictions originates from the USA, there is a growing body of literature exploring formal citizenship restrictions or civil disabilities, considering the implications of criminal records for access to citizenship rights and participation, and questioning their status as ‘collateral consequences’ rather than intended penal policy (Behan, 2020). Beyond the formal restrictions faced by those with convictions, research has also explored the experiences of those engaged in activities pre-defined as examples of ‘active citizenship’, during incarceration, through activities such as volunteering or involvement in prisoner councils (Easton, 2018).…”