Link: children of the incarcerated

[link]

Shireen Emami, Polina Ulendeeva, Lys Opp-Beckman

Parsons The New School Of Design

project proposal
children of the incarcerated

Over half of federal and state prisoners report having children under the age of 18. 35% of
these children, the largest demographic with incarcerated parents, are between the ages of 5 and 9. Upon
initial arrest, law enforcement officers and judicial systems are flawed in that they are not required to and do not
enquire as to whether or not the arrestee has children. Though this is one of many instances where children’s needs are
disregarded, it is very clear that this neglect originates from the very beginning of the incarceration
phase one: addressing the issue

process. One of the child’s primary needs is to feel that they have a say in their relationship
with the incarcerated parent and their living situation post-incarceration.

In order to address this need, we strive to develop a product that will help maintain and improve the quality
of the relationship between the child and their incarcerated parent.



research
children of the incarcerated

age distribution of children with parents in state or federal
federal and state parental incarceration rates in the U.S.
prison
2.1%
14.5%
20.4%

<1 year
H a ve 1-4 years
43%
c hild r e n

5-9 years
10-14 years
28.0%
D o no t ha ve
57% 15-17 years
c hild r e n
35.1%

57% of parents in state and federal prison report 35.1% of these children fit intothe 5 to 9 age
having a child under the age of 18 range, otherwise known as the “latency” stage.”



research
the incarcerated: offenses by gender

men
women

the majority of incacerated men are arrested for
the majority of incacerated women are arrested
violent offenses
for drug offenses



research
stages of child development

Erik Erikson is a Freudian ego-psychologist. He took Freuds ideas of human development and expanded them into 8 stages

i. infant (0-1) v. adolescence (12-18)

ii. toddler (2-3) vi. young adult (the 20’s)

iii. preschooler (3-6) vii. middle adult (late 20’s to 50’s)

iv. school-ageor latency (7-12) viii. old adult (50’s and beyond)



research
stage four: latency stage ages 5-9

psychosocial crisis significant relations psychosocial psychosocial virtues maladaptations and
modalities malignancies

industry vs. inferiority- family, neighborhood, to complete, to make competence- narrow virtuosity-
child must “tame” the school- things together- the right balance of children who aren’t
imagination. they must parents must encourage, unlike in stage 3, un- industry and inferiority. allowed to be “children”
learn to conceive plans teachers and peers must derstands the rules of i.e. child prodigies
and carry them out. accept. games, doesn’t make inertia-inferiority “if at
first you don’t succeed,
don’t even try again!”
i.e. too humiliated to
play after one loss



research
how the child will react to trauma

loss of a parent diverted energy coping patterns/ varying reactions stigma from their
uncertainty peers
Stunts development.
Inability to form new Many care takers keep Maladaptive coping for having an
Children not under
attachments information from the behavior incarcerated parent.
stress use energy to
Anger children to protect Low self-esteem felt in
master age-specific
Depression them, but it only neighborhood and at
tasks.
Regression furthers feelings of school
Anti-social behaviors uncertainty Communities offer few
support strategies



research
contributing to the missing link:
the prison itself

geographical distance/ intimidating Visitation lack of information non-contact visitation reluctance on the part
transportation cost Areas about visiting hours of caregivers to visit



research
contributing to the missing link:
laws

Foster Care Policies Mandatory Sentencing Laws
The Federal Adoption Act and The Personal Responsibility
Safe Families Act of 1997 And Work Opportunity
Reconciliation Act of 1996
Foster care parents receive Crime has a mandatory sentence
Permanency planning for those in financial support Reduces judges flexibility in
welfare system must occur within Many children go to relatives who Any person convicted of a drug determining best interest for the
the first 12 months of placement do not crime is no longer eligible to child
Women’s average sentence is 24- receive Temporary Aid for Need
36 months Families (TANF)
Parental rights may be terminated Most parents incarcerated for a
if child is in foster care for 15 out of Drug Offense
the last 22 months Many parents have financial
difficulties upon reentry
Hinders regaining custody


research
parental rights at time of arrest

Right to an Attorney
Miranda Right’s Communication with Family



research
child’s general rights

to receive age-appropriate none at time of arrest
liberty to be free from economic
treatment in the justice exploitation and other abuses
system



research
existing forms of communication

in prison

letters pay phone book on tape

out of prison

email cell or “free” phone face to face



research
parent-child relationships

Incarcerated parent

Verbal Communication
Visual contact Physical Contact
Visitation day Phone Calls Visitation day
Video Conference Video Conferencing

Book on tape

Not Incarcerated parent

Verbal Communication
Visual contact Physical Contact
Everyday the parent isn’t out of Phone Calls Everyday
town Cell Phones
Bed time stories



product proposal
initial concept sketches
phase three: design concepts



product proposal
quilt exchange program

This will be a volenteer run program that is likned to guildes in the New York area. The Guilda Are
Empire Quilter in Manhattan, The Quilters Guild Of Brooklyn, Stiches from the heart in Queens, and
Quilt in Queens.



product proposal

Child collects fabric to send Child Mails Fabric to quilters Letter is delivered to Inmate sews square
to quilters inmate arter quilters
assembel kit



product proposal

Quilter mail to child
inmate Mails letter to Child Gets Letter!
Quilter and child assemble
quilter
squares



product proposal

+ =

Released inmate and child quilter completes Happy Family
give squares for backing completes



product proposal
why quilts?

During the latency stage, a child comes to realize that the mother is separate from him
through which it appears that the child has lost something. The child realizes that he is
dependent on others and thus he loses the idea that he is independent, a realization which
creates a difficult period and brings frustration and anxiety with it. In the end it is impossible
that the mother is always there to ‘bring the world’ to the child, a realization which has
a powerful, somewhat painful, but constructive impact on the child. Through fantasizing
about the object of their wishes the child will find comfort.

These could be real objects like a blanket or a teddy bear, but other ‘objects’, such as a
melody or a word, can fulfill this role as well. This object represents all components of
‘mothering’, and it means that the child himself is able to create what he needs as well. It
enables the child to have a fantasized bond with the mother when she gradually separates
for increasingly longer periods of time. The transitional object is important at the time of
going to sleep and as a defence against anxiety.



design process
quilting traditional patterns
phase three: designing the product

friendship
pin wheel strawberry friendship ring



design process
quilting 100 years

survival quilt 1930
1900 baby blanket

hand done
hand done
1960 machine quilted
hand embroirded



design process
quilting

1997
1980

completely machined
machine quilted
hand embroided



[LINK]
the kit
phase three: the product itself

one pair of small sewing scissors
pattern handbook scraps cut into form by the child
two sewing needles
thread with no spool



[LINK]
levels of complexity according to time spent in prison
phase three: the product itself

beginner: the windmill intermediate: the snowflake advanced: baby blocks
(4 hrs per square) (5-6 hrs per square) (6-7 hrs per square)

4 large dark triangles 4 large dark triangles 8 two inch dark diamonds
4 small midtone triangles 4 small dark diamonds 8 two inch midtone diamonds
4 small light triangles 4 large dark squares 8 two inch light diamonds
8 small midtone diamonds 24 diamond shapes
16 small light diamonds


[LINK]
phase three: fnal product



sources
children with incarcerated parents

1. Family Arrested 7.) http://www.norix.com/audio.asp
Ann Edea Field accesed 10/16

2. Doing Time On The Outside 8. https://www.true.com/
Donald Braman
9. http://www.prisontalk.com/forums/
3. Children Of Incarcerated Parents 10/15
Gabel Jhonson
10. http://www.fcnetwork.org/
4. How To Do Good After Prison
Michael B. Jackson 11. http://www.fcnetwork.org/

5. 101 Patchwork Patterns
Ruby McKim
Dover Publications, Inc. New York
1962

6. Quilters Newsletter Magazine
December 1995/NO. 278



Link: children of the incarcerated

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Link: children of the incarcerated