Book Review: Clear, T. R. Imprisoning Communities: How Mass Incarceration Makes Disadvantaged Neighborhoods Worse New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2007. xv pp., 255 pp. ISBN 0195305795

• Author: Ashley Demyan
• Published date: 01 March 2010
• Date: 01 March 2010
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/0734016809349173
• Subject Matter: Articles

change. Does she achieve that goal and is the book suitable for other audiences? While Gilmore’s

political economic analysis on the growth of the prison system in California is thorough and fasci-

nating, her writing style is unnecessarily wordy and filled with academic jargon that makes it tedious

to read. Additionally, the organization of the book is often confusing because there is a great deal of

overlap among some chapters while others seem to be stand-alone chapters. Part of the problem may

be that Gilmore tries to cover two separate topics within one book: an explanation of prison expan-

sion and a case study of an activist group. Although the ROC formed in response to perceived prob-

lems in the California prison system, chapter 5 focuses more on the internal and external racism and

strife among the women during the formation of the group.

Social activists will find thisbook worthwhile because it offersa valuable and plausibleexplanation

of the intersectionof racist ideology and prison expansion. While I would not recommendthis book for

undergraduate classes, I might use it in graduate classes with the disclaimer that it is written from an

activist perspective. Overall, I would recommend this book to those who are interested in theCalifor-

nia prison system even though her writing style and organization make the book a bit tedious toread.

Clear, T. R.

Imprisoning Communities: How Mass Incarceration Makes Disadvantaged Neighborhoods Worse

New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2007. xv pp., 255 pp. ISBN 0195305795

Reviewed by: Ashley Demyan, University of California, Irvine

DOI: 10.1177/0734016809349173

As the prison population in the United States continues to grow, so does the disadvantage in certain

communities whose residents experience high rates of incarceration. In this book, Todd Clear exam-

ines the many forms of disadvantage and then explores potential strategies for change. Thoroughly

researched, a review of past studies is merged with both local (Tallahassee, Florida) and national

data and produces a compelling account of the ways in which mass incarceration affects not only

incarcerated individuals but entire communities as well.

The first part of the book provides an overview of historical, theoretical, and policy shifts that

have accounted for the dramatic rise in the prison population over the past three decades. The two

main theories behind incarceration—deterrence and incapacitation—are discussed at length in chap-

ter 2, with consideration given to the limitations of each. Three policy shifts have also had an impact

on individual and community experiences of incarceration, with effects primarily focused on minor-

ity populations. Enacted in the 1980s, drug laws have dramatically increased the prison population.

If this increased the prison population, then broad recidivism laws (such as California’s three-strikes

law) are keeping the population high. Finally, collateral consequences, including employment

restrictions and supervision strategies, create barriers to a successful life after release.

The next section details the central argument of the book, which is a systematic discussion of the

ways in which mass imprisonment is affecting certain communities within the United States. Young,

minority males from impoverished neighborhoods are disproportionately targeted by the criminal

justice system. Clear states, ‘‘Neighborhoods are the building blocks for community life, and com-

munity life is an important wellspring for a good quality of life’’ (p. 69). When young, minority

males are removed from these neighborhoods, specific problems are bound to occur, thus transform-

ing these communities into what Clear terms ‘‘prison places.’’ Already isolated from other neighbor-

hoods through methods of informal segregation, poor and minority communities—especially those

residents in-and-out of prison—have limited social networks and weak social capital. It is in these

neighborhoods that mass incarceration has its most profound negative effects.

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