firebirdscratches:

twinkrightsactivist:

charlesoberonn:

Norwegian prisons are nicer than my apartment.

holy shit dude

I was really shocked by this and dubious, so I decided to read further. There’s a great article about this here: http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35813470

As it turns out, this is more like a halfway house. Prisoners usually begin their term in a prison more like one we’d typically recognize – bars on the windows, locked in their cells. But the emphasis there is on successful reintegration into society. 

As their sentence progresses, with good behavior, they can move into a facility more like this, where their freedoms are still restricted, but they can do things like network with people outside of prison, search for employment, cook and clean and look after themselves, and begin making plans for their reintegration into society. 

As a result, Norway has one of the lowest rates of recidisvism. 20% as opposed to America’s 76%. 

It seems like a shocking idea to us because of where and how we live, but apparently, Norwegians are addressing the real problem. When you take people who can’t function well in society, and then…help them do that?…they….do. Without the crime-ing.