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The Women of Rikers Island

Do women belong in prison?


That is a question that has plagued the American criminal justice system for decades. 


Why? Many believe sending women to prison causes more harm than good, as it not only negatively impacts the woman but her entire family and community, especially if she is a mother or sole provider. Studies show, incarcerated women are more prone to sexual abuse and mental health issues such as PTSD and depression. 


Over the past quarter century, there has been a profound change in the involvement of women within the criminal legal system. According to The Sentencing Project

this is the result of more expansive law enforcement efforts, stiffer drug sentencing laws, and post-conviction barriers to reentry that uniquely affect women. A study by the organization, which advocates for a more humane and effective criminal justice system, found that the female incarcerated population stands almost seven times higher than in 1980. Even more shockingly, over sixty percent (62%) of imprisoned women in state prisons have a child under the age of 18.


One of the country’s most notorious women’s prisons located on Rikers Island in The Bronx, New York, has been at the center of criticism for years due to its reputation of abuse, violence, and mismanagement. The Rose M. Singer Center, also known as Rosie’s is one of 10 jails that make up the Rikers Island jail complex. It detains local offenders awaiting trial, those serving sentences of one year or less, or individuals temporarily placed there pending transfer to another facility.


Despite calls to shut down Rikers, and an agreement by the city and state, approximately 386 women are reportedly still incarcerated at Rosie’s; a majority of them mothers, caretakers, and/or victims of domestic violence. 


The major issue with Rikers, according to the Center for Justice Innovation, is that roughly nine out of 10 people in custody on Rikers have not been convicted of a crime, yet they are exposed daily to notoriously dangerous conditions as they await trial. Arrested individuals are sent to Rikers while awaiting trial, if no bail is set, or they are unable to post bail. This could take days, or in many cases,individuals remain incarcerated on Rikers Island for years. 


The deplorable conditions at Rikers have sparked numerous protests, leading to multiple lawsuits and federal investigations. Public cries to close Rikers date all the way back to the 1970s and 80s when the already crowded jail system became severely overpopulated. Violence began to run rampant, particularly against the adolescent population, putting those incarcerated at risk of injury and death. The violence reached an all-time high in 2022, which reported the highest number of deaths at the institution in over a decade. With no sign of conditions improving, the calls for closure have steadily increased since. 


In 2019, former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio agreed to an $8.7 billion plan to close the jail by 2026 and replace it with four borough-based complexes. The City Council approved the plan, however, a year later the city pushed the update back to 2027. Meanwhile, inmate deaths have continued to increase and criticism from the public and city officials have amplified.


Despite both Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul expressing their support for closing Rikers Island, new sexual assault and rape lawsuits have emerged out of Rosie’s as recently as January 2025. Of the multiple lawsuits dating back to the opening of the Singer Women’s prison in 1988, more than half, 56%, reference sexual assault and abuse allegations.


According to the city’s proposed plans, four different jails are expected to be built in each of the four boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens. The women housed at Rosie’s, which is the only facility on Rikers Island that detains women, would be moved to the Queens location. While they will be housed separately, the plan is for the women to share some programming and medical spaces with the male inmates. Critics worry this will create a situation where some of the 77% of incarcerated women at Rikers who are survivors of domestic violence could come face to face with their abusers. 


One such critic, The Women’s Community Justice Association , has spearheaded a campaign to turn a former minimum security men’s prison into a space for incarcerated women to ensure maximum safety and reduce the occurrence of retraumatization. 


As the closure deadline nears, Mayor Eric Adams and his administration have dealt with a flurry of protests. Earlier this month protesters gathered outside of the Apollo Theater in Harlem where Mayor Adams delivered his fourth State of the City address. During the speech, the Mayor expressed his support for closing Rikers Island:


“...a 14-year-old moving into a shelter system, feeling as though he has to go to the streets and live on our subway. If we didn't catch him, what would have happened to him? This is why we want to close Rikers.”


Two weeks later however, on January 23rd, the city confirmed that construction of the jails being built to replace Rikers will not be completed by the legally required deadline in order to close Rikers by 2027. In fact, it was revealed at a recent public hearing that the completion date for the first borough-based jail will not be until mid-2032 at the earliest.


As our nation prepares to transition to a new administration that has threatened to accelerate mass incarceration, and New York City Mayor Adams grapples with the public’s pleas for change, the question remains is there a better way to deal with women who are accused or convicted of non-violent crimes? 


As the prolific writer, activist and staunch supporter of women’s and civil rights, Angela Davis, once said: “Whenever you conceptualize social justice struggles, you will always defeat your own purposes if you cannot imagine the people around whom you are struggling as equal partners."


Ms. Davis, who eventually went to prison, only to be acquitted in 1972, went on to say:


"An attempt to create a new conceptual terrain for imagining alternatives to imprisonment involves the ideological work of questioning why "criminals" have been constituted as a class and, indeed, a class of human beings undeserving of the civil and human rights accorded to others. Radical criminologists have long pointed out that the category "lawbreakers" is far greater than the category of individuals who are deemed criminals since, many point out, almost all of us have broken the law at one time or another."


While there is unlikely to be a quick-fix, one size fits all answer that will appease everyone, there have been some widely used alternatives to prison for women that have proven successful, particularly in other countries. Less damaging and more humane recommendations have included supervised home confinement, halfway houses, drug courts or treatment, and mental health treatment, which can be combined with fines, restitution, and community service.


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We would love to hear your thoughts—should women of non-violent crimes be incarcerated, or is there a better way? Share your perspective in the comments.




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