Jail gay stories

With the onset of the television program "Oz" (which I've never viewed), there's a newer consciousness of the jail experience: extreme violence and sex between men, often forced, as a reality of.

What follows are 10 things I learned from the perspective of a gay man and ex-inmate at a federal prison camp. FYI: there is a big difference between a camp and penitentiary. There were several gay men in prison with me – some completely open, some confided, and others wouldn’t say a word to anybody. The prison had an Equality and Diversity Team who helped minority groups within the prison, be that religion, age, ex-forces and LGBT.

At one, being gay was something celebrated. The compound was accepting, as was staff. We had an outrageous Pride Month. At another, there was a decent group of gay guys but no real community. And at a third, there were a lot of gays having one-night stands, but not many real relationships. I was walking the prison track on a sunny southern California day in when a friend I’ll call Michael joined me.

He looked like he could barely hold it together. Sex in prison: Experiences of former prisoners is the fifth and final briefing paper published by the Commission, which was established by the Howard League for Penal Reform and includes eminent academics, former prison governors and health experts. The Commission sought permission to interview current prisoners about their experiences of sex in prison, but this approach was blocked by the Ministry of Justice.

However, Dr Alisa Stevens, Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Southampton, was able to interview 26 former prisoners during the summer of — 24 men and two women. The former prisoners interviewed by Dr Stevens had been jailed for a wide range of offences. Eighteen interviewees self-identified as heterosexual, four as gay, and four as bisexual. They usually had sex in the cell of one of the participants or in the showers, during periods of association.

Some men who shared cells had sex at night. Some sexually active men were refused condoms, while others were able to obtain them from healthcare but often in circumstances which did not allow for any privacy. Sometimes condoms were rationed. Interviewees who had not personally had sex in prison were sometimes aware of consensual sex taking place among other prisoners. Generally, among the participants in this study, there was a high degree of tolerance towards other prisoners participating in consensual sex.

In these circumstances, it is highly problematic to describe the sexual activity as genuinely consensual, because it was only offered as a commercial exchange. Three male interviewees disclosed that they had been raped in prison, by prisoners. Three others had been threatened with rape by other prisoners. Because nobody wants to know, nobody wants to hear about this horrendous, horrendous abuse. One interviewee had been raped by five assailants in a cell and required in-prison medical treatment.

He was encouraged to report the rapes by the nurse who treated him, but when he told a principal officer what had happened, he was dissuaded from making a formal complaint. The research found that there was a tacit acceptance by prison staff of both ography and masturbation. Some interviewees observed that they had known some openly homosexual couples being allowed to share cells in some institutions. NOMS policy, however, is that men who are known, or are discovered, to be in a sexual relationship are not allowed to share a cell and will be separated.

This action had been perceived at the time as well-intentioned, but it underlines the need for staff to be trained in how to manage discussions around sex and sexuality and how to recognise the potential for grooming and abuse. It is a great shame that permission was not granted to afford the opportunity for those serving prison sentences to contribute to the research in this matter. The Commission has conducted the first systematic review of sex in prison and it is clear important lessons must be learned, and fast.

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Tagged with prisoners prisons research sex in prison. Join the Howard League We are the world's oldest prison charity, bringing people together to advocate for change. Join us and make your voice heard Support our work We safeguard our independence and do not accept any funding from government. Make a donation.