Prison Food in America
- Authors:
- Publisher:
- 2016
Summary
America seems presently fascinated by prison culture and the inner workings of what happens behind clinked doors. With TV shows creating binge-watchers of us all, and celebrities piquing public interest as they end up behind bars, Americans seem to enjoy a good gawk at prison life. Each year, more than 1.3 million visitors still trek out to Alcatraz Island, one of the most famous prisons in the world. And why shouldn’t they be curious about prison? We as a nation currently incarcerate more people per capita than any other country, and our prisons are notoriously rough, violent, and overcrowded.
At the same time, we love our food, take pictures of it, post it socially, and discuss our foodie favorites. Rarely do we consider the food experiences of those for whom sustenance is more difficult to obtain, particularly those incarcerated, where choice and access is severely limited. Prison food is often everything to prisoners. It is the only marker of time throughout the day. Food becomes commerce in the microeconomies behind prison walls. It is often the only source of pleasure in a monotonous routine. It creates sites of community when prisoners ban together to create recipes, but also becomes a site of discord when issues surrounding fairness and equity arise in the chow hall. Prison Food in America offers a high-level snapshot of the fare offered behind bars, its general guidelines and regulations, fascinating stories about prisoners and food, and the remarkable and varied ways food plays a role in the fabric of prison culture.
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Bibliographic data
- Copyright year
- 2016
- ISBN-Print
- 978-1-4422-5347-6
- ISBN-Online
- 978-1-4422-5348-3
- Publisher
- Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham
- Language
- English
- Pages
- 140
- Product type
- Book Titles
Table of contents
- Contents No access
- 1 America’s Prison System and the Role of Food in It No access Pages 1 - 12
- 2 A Brief History of Prison Food No access Pages 13 - 26
- 3 The Business of Prison Food No access Pages 27 - 40
- 4 Sample Menus, Nutritional Standards, and Special Diets No access Pages 41 - 56
- 5 Food as Protest, Food as Punishment No access Pages 57 - 70
- 6 The Commissary No access Pages 71 - 86
- 7 Prison Gardens, Culinary Training, and Examples from Abroad No access Pages 87 - 96
- 8 Last Meals No access Pages 97 - 106
- Notes No access Pages 107 - 122
- Bibliography No access Pages 123 - 134
- Index No access Pages 135 - 138
- About the Author No access Pages 139 - 140





