Erika Cohn's "Belly of the Beast" exposes a history of forced sterilizations of female prisoners in California's prisons, which continued into the 21st century. Throughout history, sterilization was a favored punishment for those considered "feeble-minded"; it was eugenics plain and simple.
It's a grim story, and one that reaffirms everything that's wrong with this country's prison system. The prison system focuses on punishment instead of rehabilitation. The US now has over two million people incarcerated, most of them black and Latino.
Anyway, the documentary does a great job focusing on the treatment of these women, and lawyer Cynthia Chandler's efforts to expose this treatment. Definitely see it.
It's a grim story, and one that reaffirms everything that's wrong with this country's prison system. The prison system focuses on punishment instead of rehabilitation. The US now has over two million people incarcerated, most of them black and Latino.
Anyway, the documentary does a great job focusing on the treatment of these women, and lawyer Cynthia Chandler's efforts to expose this treatment. Definitely see it.