Invisible Punishment: The Collateral Consequences of Mass Imprisonment

Invisible Punishment reveals how the two million imprisoned Americans and their families are being punished by factors well beyond incarceration.

In these pages, leading scholars and advocates in criminal justice explore the far-reaching consequences of thirty years of “get tough” policies on prisoners, on ex-felons, and on families and communities who have committed no crimes. Contributors explore the hidden ramifications of convictions for inmates and for those who have already served their time — including a host of “invisible punishments,” from disenfranchisement and disqualification from public housing, welfare benefits, and job training, to greatly increased exposure to fatal diseases. Other essays examine the financially encumbered families who must travel hundreds of miles as a result of the rural prison movement, and the communities deprived of young men who would otherwise be starting families and careers. Edited by Marc Mauer and Meda Chesney-Lind, Invisible Punishment defines the boundaries of a whole new field of inquiry concerning criminal justice in America and should open the door to a profound reconsideration of our approach to crime and punishment.

The book is published by The New Press and is available from its catalog and national booksellers.

Marc Mauer is the assistant director of The Sentencing Project, a national organization based in Washington, D.C., that promotes criminal justice reform. He is the author of Race to Incarcerate (The New Press).

Meda Chesney-Lind is a former vice president of the American Society of Criminology, a professor of women’s studies at the University of Hawaii, and the author of the award-winning Girls, Delinquency, and Juvenile Justice.