“I initially decided to take up tertiary study to fill in time and give me a focus, but then it became about positive change,” says Michelle. “It became important to me not to be the same person that walked in. I wanted, if I could, to make something positive come out of something so awful.”
Michelle has written an auto-ethnographic thesis called ‘Property of Corrections’, which situates herself among the other prison inmates she interviewed. “I dithered about whether I was going to include myself in it but I realised that I had to. It’s about my journey with the women, so as well as being the researcher I was also the researched.”
She discovered a lot of similarities between the experiences and lives of many of the inmates. For instance, many had been abused as children or struggled with addiction or mental health issues. Of particular interest to her was why so many women end up back in prison after their first offence.
Although prison offers courses for self-improvement, Michelle says putting theory into practice requires a less controlled environment. However, once women are released from prison they receive minimal support. “I remember walking out the gate on my first [unsuccessful] release and the gate closed behind me—that was it. Ten years and you’re on your own.
“If we as a society want to lower the crime rate we have to give people the chance to be productive members of society. If they can’t get work or have opportunities they’re inevitably going to commit more crime to get by.”
Michelle doesn’t believe that harsher sentences are the answer. “[Social commentator] Celia Lashlie was the first person to say it—you don’t go to prison to be punished, prison is the punishment. It’s important to treat the person who’s imprisoned as a decent human being and to try and show them kindness and respect and help them to become better people.”
She acknowledges that it is hard to overcome people’s desire for revenge. “Vengeance is like a cancer that eats you. What does work is forgiveness—but people have this skewed idea that if you forgive someone you are giving them permission to have hurt you. However, when you forgive someone you set yourself free because you can go on and have your own life.”
On reflection, Michelle believes that her own sentence saved her life. “I was very ill and severely addicted to drugs, and my behaviour was out of control—the length of time I was inside gave me time to think about what I’d done. I was lucky enough to have a loving and supportive family to help me when I got out.”
Michelle will graduate with a Master’s in Criminology. She will be joined by her two daughters and her sister for the graduation ceremony, and plans to follow on with a quiet celebration at home.