Waiting at the Prison Gate: Women, Identity and the Russian Penal System (International Library of Human Geography)($175.00Value)

Description

The Russian Federation has one of the largest prison populations in the world. Women in particular are profoundly affected by the imprisonment of a family member. Families and Punishment in Russia details the experiences of these women-be they wives, mothers, girlfriends, daughters-who, as relatives of Russia's three-quarters of a million prisoners, are the "invisible victims" of the country's harsh penal policy. A pioneering work that offers a unique lens through which various aspects of life in twenty-first century Russia can be observed: the workings of criminal sub-cultures; societal attitudes to parenthood, marriage and marital fidelity; young women's quests for a husband; nostalgia for the Soviet period; state strategies towards dealing with political opponents; and the social construction of gender roles. “This new publication by Judith Pallot and Elena Katz is a remarkable, moving, and accessible examination of a hitherto neglected phenomenon… The book is essential reading for scholars, students and general readers with an interest in Russia and in all aspects of incarceration.” (The Howard Journal) Judith Pallot is a Professor of the Human Geography of Russia, School of Geography and Environment, University of Oxford. Her interest in Russia spans four decades and she is a regular commentator for the media - including BBC Radio 4, Women’s Hour, Radio Free Europe and NBC (Canada) - on questions of the Russian penal system. She is the author of a number of books, including most recently (with Laura Piacentini) Gender, Geography and Punishment: Women’s Experiences of Carceral Russia (2012), which was awarded the Barbara Heldt prize for the best book in Slavic/East European/Eurasian Women’s Studies Studies. (2016-05-06)