Most go to prison not on account of their irreducible uniqueness as people but because they are part of a marginalized sector of the population who never had a chance, who were slated for it early on.
Interpretation
This quote highlights how systemic issues can lead to incarceration rather than individual faults.
Rachel Kushner's quote reflects on the societal and systemic factors that contribute to incarceration rates among marginalized communities. It suggests that many individuals are not imprisoned due to their unique actions or characteristics, but rather because they belong to groups that face historical disadvantages and lack opportunities. This perspective urges a deeper understanding of the root causes of crime and punishment, emphasizing the need for social change and support for those who are disadvantaged from the start.
In practice
During a talk on social justice, this quote can be cited to highlight the need for reform in the criminal justice system.
I am just getting into Zora Neale Hurston, who is possibly a much better writer than the critics and rivals who tried to erase her from history, resulting in a life in which she worked as a maid and died in a welfare nursing home. She's clever. She does something modern to the sentence.
Making art was really about the problem of the soul, of losing it. It was a technique for inhabiting the world. For not dissolving into it.
Why does everyone take for granted that we don't learn to grow arms, but rather, are designed to grow arms? Similarly, we should conclude that in the case of the development of moral systems; there's a biological endowment which in effect requires us to develop a system of moral judgment and a theory of justice, if you like, that in fact has detailed applicability over an enormous range.
I feel like I could be likened to an old hound circling on a rug for the last five years.
Every man's death is standing in for every other. And since death comes to all there is no way to abate the fear of it except to love the man who stands for us.
Gnostic politics is self-defeating in so far as its disregard for the structure of reality leads to continuous warfare.
I don't think there's such a thing as autobiographical fiction. If I say it happened, it happened, even if only in my mind.
Peace is the precious fruit of a righteous life. It is possible because of the Atonement of the Savior. It is earned through full repentance, for that leads to refreshing forgiveness.
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