Life behind bars

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately: how is it that on the streets, criminals from every different race, religion, and background work together just fine, but once they hit prison, everyone immediately retreats back into their own ethnic cliques?
It’s especially wild when you look at how things go down in the USA.

Sure, they cooperate on the surface, but at the end of the day, they’re still sticking closely to their own community.

I’m not convinced there is any real cooperation on the streets either... from what I can tell, even in major US cities, people remain divided along ethnic lines.
Any cooperation that does occur is purely driven by shared—and often fleeting—interests.
I suspect you see similar patterns in prison... though in those cases, such alliances tend to stay under the radar.

I mean, just look at how our local organized crime operates... it’s actually the perfect example. You’ve got everyone working together—doesn't matter if they're from different backgrounds or old rivalries—because in those circles, there isn't any of that old-school animosity. It just doesn't exist when business is on the line.
Like Gerald Rivera60 said, it's all about a shared interest—cold, hard cash.

So, how do people actually deal with claustrophobia and being stuck in tight spaces?
...it’s just this non-stop sense of paranoia, straight-up panic attacks... and all that stuff.

Angela Rogers2 said:I mean, just look at how our local organized crime operates... it’s actually the perfect example. You’ve got everyone working together—doesn't matter if they're from different backgrounds or old rivalries—because in those circles, there isn't any of that old-school animosity. It just doesn't exist when business is on the line.
Like Gerald Rivera60 said, it's all about a shared interest—cold, hard cash.

Offtopic
Truth Social, man. They were trading oil even during the absolute worst parts of the war... 👎
And the guys at the top definitely knew what was happening...
But anyway, that's not really what we're talking about here...

Honestly, I'm not even thinking about our prisons, more like the big American ones...
Because even in the real world, you see White Americans and Black Americans working side-by-side with Mexicans...

I don't know all that much about how the American system works, honestly. I was doing some light digging on Explorer earlier regarding Arijac inmates in prison...

😁Just adding this photo to my series of Oz clips.

Yeah, I get it... people naturally gravitate toward each other. It’s just how things work—there's strength in numbers. But honestly, let's talk about these American prisons for a second. You've got career criminals pulling two or three life sentences, yet somehow they end up walking free sooner than our own guys because of all those mass pardons and stuff... you know, those holiday releases and whatnot. I've actually spent some time behind bars, and man, it's interesting... everyone there acts like they're totally innocent. It's this weird "innocence syndrome." I think it's because they're actually ashamed of what they did compared to the actual murderers who basically run the social hierarchy in there. Funny enough, even the toughest convicts absolutely loathe pedophiles and rapists. But if you want to see real hatred? It's directed at the snitches and rats. They're at the bottom of the food chain.
I could probably write a whole memoir about it, but I'll try not to go too far off topic...

Donna Sullivan7 said:Yeah, I get it... people naturally gravitate toward each other. It’s just how things work—there's strength in numbers. But honestly, let's talk about these American prisons for a second. You've got career criminals pulling two or three life sentences, yet somehow they end up walking free sooner than our own guys because of all those mass pardons and stuff... you know, those holiday releases and whatnot. I've actually spent some time behind bars, and man, it's interesting... everyone there acts like they're totally innocent. It's this weird "innocence syndrome." I think it's because they're actually ashamed of what they did compared to the actual murderers who basically run the social hierarchy in there. Funny enough, even the toughest convicts absolutely loathe pedophiles and rapists. But if you want to see real hatred? It's directed at the snitches and rats. They're at the bottom of the food chain.
I could probably write a whole memoir about it, but I'll try not to go too far off topic...

Sorry, if I misunderstood... were you actually in an American prison?

Richard Wilson4 said:I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately: how is it that on the streets, criminals from every different race, religion, and background work together just fine, but once they hit prison, everyone immediately retreats back into their own ethnic cliques?
It’s especially wild when you look at how things go down in the USA.

Watching Oz, are ya?

Richard Wilson4 said:I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately: how is it that on the streets, criminals from every different race, religion, and background work together just fine, but once they hit prison, everyone immediately retreats back into their own ethnic cliques?
It’s especially wild when you look at how things go down in the USA.

You've spent way too much time watching Oz, Law & Order, and prison movies.

mistyseal11 said:So, how do people actually deal with claustrophobia and being stuck in tight spaces?
...it’s just this non-stop sense of paranoia, straight-up panic attacks... and all that stuff.

bump

In America, they probably just hand out meds and therapy sessions 😁
over here, they likely let them loose to face their own fears and figure it out themselves 😁just a guess.

I once spent some time in a correctional facility (though not as an inmate😁 )
The primary struggle they face is simply how agonizingly slow the time crawls by..
Those who possess significant financial resources tend to fare much better; for instance, they have the ability to order their own meals
Typically, there are four people sharing a cell... they aren't particularly spacious

My suggestions:
Consider this—a version of Big Brother set inside a prison...😁 instead of wasting millions of dollars on those tedious reality shows where uninspired kids sit in armchairs rambling about life without having any actual experience... let's film predators, killers, and listen to their stories... at least there would be substance to listen to. You could even bring in a stripper on a Friday night when the local bars are hopping. Now that would be a real show.
Whoever wins... the prize money goes to the victims... and the winner gets one year off their sentence

Andrew Ramos10 said:Sorry, if I misunderstood... were you actually in an American prison?

Yeah, I was in for some document forgery issues... but back home, it was mostly because of some fights...

Four people to a cell? Man, back when I was held at Rikers, we’d have six or even seven crammed in there... honestly, the conditions are just brutal while you're under investigation. You're supposed to get an hour of yard time, but what kind of "walk" is that when they strip you down to nothing and take everything else too? I was usually under constant watch anyway, just to make sure I didn't try to hang myself...

Man, forget all that talk about ethnic groups. I actually knew a guy who was straight out of a high-security prison in Chicago... everyone would just yell at him through the barred windows during yard time, but honestly, nobody could touch him. He was a total badass, always grinding and training in his cell...

They showed us that room with the 4-inch layout. That was about 7 or 8 years ago...

I’d honestly rather just go to hell than end up behind bars.

Like, if you want to restrict my freedom... if you really need some other way to "correct" behavior that society deems unacceptable, fine, go ahead...
but don't you dare throw me in some damn prison. Just tie me to a tree or something.

Man, I once got hauled in by the cops just for being around... They called me over and told me I had to head down to the station to sign some paperwork promising I wouldn't show up to a high-risk game. So, we did all that, but then they ran my background check and realized I actually had an outstanding warrant. Apparently, I’d missed a summons for some totally trivial court thing I didn't even remember... such a nothing issue, really. Anyway, long story short, I ended up spending 28 days in jail during the middle of summer because it was August and the judges were all away on vacation. It was enough to drive me insane... ended up landing in a county correctional hospital for a bit.