Frances Crook RSM Webinar

[porridgecake]

I have just finished watching this. It was really informative and well worth watching.
Frances Crook was a former teacher and labour councilor in local government.
She is the Chief Executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, and has just done an excellent "in conversation" webinar with the Royal Society of Medicine.
It occurs to me that this is a person we should be writing to with regard to the situation of women in UK prisons, and the views of certain members of the labour party regarding who should be locked up with these vulnerable women.

Good point Porridge, did they say if they were recording the webinar?

Thanks Porridge. I'd appreciate any links if such things exist...

I know they record them, but I am not sure if they are accessible later. I will try and find out.

@porridgecake

I know they record them, but I am not sure if they are accessible later. I will try and find out.

Thanks, nothing on the website atm but so share if anything pops up.

I have just been advised that they are available on u tube. I am multitasking on phone atm, but it might be worth a look. DH signed up for this one and sent me the link so I didn't even organise it myself.
The RSM does one of these every Wednesday at 7pm. They are free.

There's a link for their 'In conversation with...' series on the website , Crook interview isn't up just yet: www.rsm.ac.uk/resources/videos/

While I was looking for links I came across another video from 2010, in which she is talking to the labour party about support for women in prison...
I will watch that tomorrow. I have a feeling it will show how much things have changed.
I do hope tonight's webinar will be available for anyone to watch.
I am inspired to write to Frances Crook anyway.

I think you'll find that Frances Crook is fully alive to the importance of women's prisons being single sex, and men's crimes not being attributed to women.

Google has lots of stuff - including, for example, this from a Mail Online article about transwomen in women's prisons from June 2018:

"Prison reformer Frances Crook said that she was worried that ‘some men with a history of extreme violence and sexual violence against women have found a new way of exercising aggression towards women’.

Ms Crook, executive director of the Howard League for Penal Reform, added: ‘These men are not transitioning because they like women and want to be a woman, but in order to exert a new kind of control and dominance over women, a sort of infiltration."

Excellent news - and thanks for the link Hecates.

The GC / single-sex provision supporters do seem to have exceptionally large brains and a capacity for rational thought that isn't always evident in t'other side. All we need to do now is get politicians to listen.

Francis Crook was at the WPUK 2020 conference in February (www.google.com/amp/s/womansplaceuk.org/womens-liberation-2020-plenaries-panels-workshops/%3famp) co-running this session. Crook is very on her brief & was encouraging people to get involved in scrutinising prisons but until I find my notes I can't remember exactly what she called this role. Mind I think Covid will have stopped public visits somewhat....

18. A woman’s place is not in prison/Frances Crook & Jo Phoenix: This workshop will explore the various ways in which imprisonment & criminalisation impact differently on men & women. It will map out some of the current organisations working with & for incarcerated & criminalised women & explore possibilities for change in the future. While the first part of the workshop will be the presentation of information, there will be plenty of time for participants to discuss issues & explore new ideas

That's good to know Socrates 🙏🏼