Author: Erin Jeon, University of Manitoba Law Student
Prisons have notoriously low literacy rates. Low literacy logically contributes to high recidivism rates. Not only is reading necessary for essential tasks such as finding housing and employment, but it also helps to develop critical thinking and self-reflection skills.1
One of the main ways literacy in prisons can be improved is through libraries. Prison libraries have been shown to increase inmates’ reading time. Following an extensive renovation to a Münster prison library, 60% of inmates in a study said they read for an average of two hours each day, a significant increase from their pre-incarceration reading time.2 Therefore, by encouraging inmates to read, prison libraries improve literacy and decrease recidivism. Beyond assisting those who have a low literacy level, libraries also provide prisoners relief from the boredom of prison life and help them avoid getting into trouble.3
Although there is now some form of library in all provincial Manitoba prisons (except for the Brandon Correctional Centre), these libraries are not mandated by legislation. Though an aspect of the Manitoba Law Foundation’s purpose is to develop and maintain law libraries, the provincial government is not required in any way to ensure that libraries and their services exist within provincial prisons.4 Other provinces face similar issues, as only Ontario has mandated libraries in its prisons.5
The libraries in Manitoba prisons exist largely because of the efforts of the Prison Libraries Committee, which “provides collections, programming and library awareness for people who are incarcerated in Manitoba.”6 Despite the Prison Libraries Committee’s efforts, there is still a great need for more resources in Manitoba prison libraries. The Committee has a yearly budget of only $500, and the books it wishes to add to the collection are often expensive.7 There is also a need for more Indigenous content, given the large population of Indigenous people in Manitoba prisons.8 Given the struggles that provincial prison libraries face in Manitoba, it is worth examining the prison library systems and programs of other jurisdictions to see how other prison libraries have found success in serving inmates through creative systems and programs.
Collaboration Between Public and Prison Libraries
Several public libraries in Europe collaborate closely with prison libraries, ensuring that prison libraries are well-resourced and that inmates have sufficient access to library materials. In the UK, public and prison libraries have collaborated for decades. Due to financial constraints in the Second World War, prison authorities began paying fees to public libraries and in exchange the libraries provided prisons with books.9 This practice was incorporated into the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 and is standard across the country.10
Similarly, in Hamburg, Germany, prison libraries are coordinated in the central public library.11 The public library organizes the book collection and administration of six prison libraries throughout Hamburg.12 In addition to being able to access books in their own libraries, inmates in Hamburg can use the interlibrary loan system, which provides them with access to over 1.8 million resources in the public library.13
Slovenia has taken a unique approach to providing inmates with books. The Ljubljana Mobile Library services people who have difficulty accessing the main library, including those living with disabilities, people living in remote areas, and prisoners.14 The bus has 47 different stops on its route, including at the only women’s prison in Slovenia.15 Inmates are permitted to loan books, CDs, and DVDs.16
Norway has the most extensive public-prison library collaboration of any country: their prison libraries are branches of the local public libraries.17 It is Norwegian law that everyone who lives in the country is entitled to library access.18 Norway’s prison libraries are an example of the “import system,” where services inside institutions are provided by organizations on the outside. Prison libraries are funded by the government, and responsibilities for the libraries are split between public libraries and the institutions.19
Collaboration between public and prison libraries helps to ensure that inmates have access to a wide collection of books, and an increase in resources and connections enables prison libraries to provide relevant programming to inmates.
Access to Technology and E-Learning
The potential for technology to increase access to the outside world and provide opportunities for inmates is being utilized by several countries. Additionally, given how integrated technology is with society today, it is important for inmates to be exposed to it so that they are able to navigate the modern world following release.
In an effort to revitalize their library program and expand their collection beyond physical books, Chilean prison libraries created an offline digital resource centre.20 The centre provides access to digital literacy training, educational and recreational materials, videos, music, and vocational training, and has contributed to increasing the number of registered library users to two-thirds of Chilean inmates and lowering the recidivism rate.21
Germany’s elis (e-learning in prisons) program provides both online and offline learning opportunities for inmates.22 Elis’s technological infrastructure allows inmates to securely access online learning platforms. Over 120 prisons in Germany and Austria utilize elis to support inmate learning.23
In the UK, the charity Storybook Dads uses technology to record inmate parents reading books for their children, filling a need for parents to maintain connections with their children while incarcerated. Storybook Dads has also trained 830 inmates in audio/visual editing since 2002.24 As a result of the program, 97% of inmates felt that their relationships with their children improved, and 82% felt that they were less likely to reoffend as a result of participating.25
Valuing the Expertise of Librarians
Librarians are instrumental in creating safe, effective library spaces within prisons. Because of this, some countries have prioritized employing professional librarians to work in prison libraries.
In France, librarians working for public libraries were tasked with working in prison libraries regularly to reorganize prison libraries to more closely reflect the public library system.26 Librarians thus became critical in operating prison libraries, building their collections, and creating programs to support prisoners and encourage reading.27
The Netherlands require prison libraries and library assistants to graduate from training programs, which equip them to serve inmates.28 As civil servants, prison librarians and assistants report to the Ministry of Justice. An advisory body represents the interests of prison library staff, and organizes meetings, networking events, and enables information exchange between libraries.29
By establishing relationships with inmates that are built on trust, librarians can create a space that allows inmates to communicate their needs.30 In librarians, inmates can have a positive role model in a place not known for positive influences.31
There are countless examples from around the world of prison libraries that, although imperfect, provide effective library services to inmates. In establishing links between public and prison libraries, utilizing technology to encourage learning and connect to the outside world, and valuing the skills of librarians, prison libraries around the world have found creative ways to overcome barriers and encourage reading among inmates. Given the value libraries have in decreasing recidivism, the prisons, libraries, and government in Manitoba should look internationally to see how Manitoba inmates can be better served by libraries in the collections and programs that are offered.
- Moira Marquis, “Reading Isn’t a Crime, but the State of Prison Libraries is a Punishment” (7 November 2023), online: <thehill.com/opinion/criminal-justice/4295762-reading-isnt-a-crime-but-the-state-of-prison-libraries-is-a-punishment/>; UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning, “UIL Policy Brief 11: How Prison Libraries Support Rehabilitation Efforts” (2020) at 2-3, online (pdf): <files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED612492.pdf>. ↩︎
- Lisa Krolak, Books Beyond Bars: The Transformative Potential of Prison Libraries (Hamburg: UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning, 2019) at 27. ↩︎
- Ibid at 42. ↩︎
- The Legal Profession Act, CCSM 2002, c L107, s 88(e), online (pdf): <https://web2.gov.mb.ca/laws/statutes/ccsm/_pdf.php?cap=l107>. ↩︎
- Correctional Services Transformation Act, 2018 SO, c 6, ss 60, 90(3). ↩︎
- Manitoba Library Association, “Prison Libraries Committee” (last visited 6 August 2024), online: <mla.mb.ca/about/committees/prison-libraries-committee/>. ↩︎
- Books with legal information are highly coveted by prison libraries. These books, as I’m sure many readers know, are usually expensive; Sav Jonsa, “‘They Had No Libraries’: Book Drive in Winnipeg Gets Reading into Province’s Jails” (15 May 2023), online: <aptnnews.ca/national-news/they-had-no-libraries-book-drive-in-winnipeg-gets-reading-into-provinces-jails/>. ↩︎
- Ibid. ↩︎
- Krolak, supra note 2 at 23-24. ↩︎
- Ibid at 24. ↩︎
- Ibid at 24. ↩︎
- Ibid at 24. ↩︎
- Ibid at 24. ↩︎
- Ibid at 25. ↩︎
- Ibid at 25. ↩︎
- Ibid at 25. ↩︎
- Ibid at 22. ↩︎
- Ibid at 22. ↩︎
- Ibid at 22. ↩︎
- Ibid at 30. ↩︎
- Ibid at 30. ↩︎
- Ibid at 34. ↩︎
- Ibid at 34-35. ↩︎
- Ibid at 41. ↩︎
- Ibid at 40-41. ↩︎
- Ibid at 29. ↩︎
- Ibid at 29. ↩︎
- Ibid at 29. ↩︎
- Ibid at 29. ↩︎
- Ibid at 26. ↩︎
- Ibid at 28. ↩︎