The Queen's University Belfast Institute for Collaborative Research in the Humanities 'Cross-Currents in British and Irish Working Class Life' research group in conjunction with etcetera theatre company is proud to present an evening remembering the life of David Ervine as part of its ongoing series of events.

Remembering the Life of David Ervine

Alex Cavendish casts his eye over a toxic blend of austerity and illiteracy in prisons which has an effect on the poorest among the prison population. Alex Cavendish is an author and academic: a social anthropologist, former prisoner and an active participant in the debate surrounding crime, prisons and probation. He blogs at Prison UK: An Insider's View.

I’ve often reflected that literacy can – sometimes literally – provide a lifeline to prisoners. For many inmates their experience of imprisonment is primarily about exclusion and isolation. Separated from family and friends, and increasingly from other inmates due to the rise in 23-hour a day ‘bang up’ in their cells as one consequence of overcrowding and staff shortages in many prisons, the ability to read and write can maintain channels of communication with the outside world that otherwise might be closed.

Sentenced to Silence

  • Monkeys are superior to men in this: when a monkey looks into a mirror, he sees a monkey - Malcolm De Chazal
Danny Morrison seems to have left the shelter of the monastery, freed for a while from his vow of silence. A relapse or full recovery - we don’t yet know - from the effects of at least two embarrassing encounters that showed the measure of the man. There was little to measure.

Morrison Is No Monkey

Alex Cavendish reflects on the value of his prison experience and also flags up the British government efforts to curb research into prison life. Alex Cavendish is an author and academic: a social anthropologist, former prisoner and an active participant in the debate surrounding crime, prisons and probation. He blogs at Prison UK: An Insider's View.
 
One of the recurring questions I’ve been asked about my prison experiences is the extent to which I’ve found them of value for my professional work. I was recently also asked by a serving prison governor whether I found it “painful” to recall my time inside. The answers are complex.

Regrets? I’ve Had a Few…