Carceral geographies of imprisoned motherhood

Abstract

Women in detention constitute a marginalized group facing gender-specific challenges during incarceration, one of which is motherhood. Research on mothers in the space of prison, however, is conspicuous by its neglect in geography, especially in the context of Switzerland. In my bachelor’s thesis, I used interviews with formerly incarcerated mothers and prison staff members to examine experiences of and governance towards incarcerated mothers in the women’s prison in Hindelbank, Switzerland. Despite experiences of motherhood being unique and rather ambiguous including both negative and positive aspects, incarcerated mothers in Hindelbank encounter additional harm in prison due to being a mother. Governance towards mothers is multi-scalar, involving numerous local and cantonal formal actors as well as various non-state actors. Moreover, broader national policies as well as spatial features shape the scope for action of mothers in Hindelbank. The findings indicate that motherhood is central to the experience of incarcerated women, yet penal enforcement in Switzerland hardly accounts for their needs: the well-being of mothers and their children seems subordinated to risk and safety orientation in Swiss penal enforcement. Through the versatility of its findings the thesis underscores the necessity for further research on the discriminating gendered Swiss prison system and the contribution of a feminist geographic perspective to better understand and ultimately improve conditions in prisons for mothers.