trapped series by Jenn Ackermann (2013)
Jenn Ackerman is a photographer who spent an ample amount of time taking photos inside the Kentucky State Reformatory. Her mission is to accurately portray the reality of living with mental illness for prisoners as well as to call attention to the over incarceration of the mentally ill.
The far left picture shows a man reaching through his cell door for comfort from a gloved person. This photograph captures the mental turmoil many of these prisoners are experiencing on a daily basis.
The middle photo shows a line of sickly inmates waiting for medications. It displays the serious lack of treatment and over medication that is plaguing the ill in our prison system.
The far right photo brings the cruelty of the way mentally ill inmates are treated to life. The image of a man strapped to a chair looks like a shot from a horror movie, not the way modern America approaches treatment.
An increasing number of mentally ill people are being incarcerated as a default to the treatment they deserve. These images are very touching and make an emotional appeal to help these people in need.
The far left picture shows a man reaching through his cell door for comfort from a gloved person. This photograph captures the mental turmoil many of these prisoners are experiencing on a daily basis.
The middle photo shows a line of sickly inmates waiting for medications. It displays the serious lack of treatment and over medication that is plaguing the ill in our prison system.
The far right photo brings the cruelty of the way mentally ill inmates are treated to life. The image of a man strapped to a chair looks like a shot from a horror movie, not the way modern America approaches treatment.
An increasing number of mentally ill people are being incarcerated as a default to the treatment they deserve. These images are very touching and make an emotional appeal to help these people in need.
The Jailed Elderly series by Andrew Burton (2013)
Andrew Burton is a photographer who did shoots in California Men’s Colony Prison to shed light on the experience of the incarcerated elderly. In class and through readings we learned there are currently over 2.2 million people being held by the prison system, which has led to grossly over populated prisons.
In Burton’s first photo, on the left, he is able to capture what it means to be old. The man in the picture has wrinkles, a slightly drooping face, and age spots. His eyes are lowered and his hair grey. He does not appear as the threat he may have in his youth.
In the photo on the right, Burton captures walkers and wheel chairs waiting outside of the prison cells of those who need to use them. This image raises the question “is it really necessary to keep these elderly people in jail?”
After all, the purpose of jail is to keep harmful people out of the public. If an elderly prisoner is unable to walk on their own, they most likely will not be harming others. The elderly also need care that is not being provided in jail. These pictures help to display the broken prison system we have in America and the people who are suffering because of that.
In Burton’s first photo, on the left, he is able to capture what it means to be old. The man in the picture has wrinkles, a slightly drooping face, and age spots. His eyes are lowered and his hair grey. He does not appear as the threat he may have in his youth.
In the photo on the right, Burton captures walkers and wheel chairs waiting outside of the prison cells of those who need to use them. This image raises the question “is it really necessary to keep these elderly people in jail?”
After all, the purpose of jail is to keep harmful people out of the public. If an elderly prisoner is unable to walk on their own, they most likely will not be harming others. The elderly also need care that is not being provided in jail. These pictures help to display the broken prison system we have in America and the people who are suffering because of that.