ABSTRACT
How do you institute an empowering gender sensitive program within an institutional facility surrounded by high wire and patrolled by male officers? That is the dilemma discussed in this chapter. The discussion starts with an overview of gender sensitive philosophy as developed in the writings of Carol Gilligan and feminist criminologists. This introduction to the literature provides a background for the later sections on gender-specific and trauma-informed care. What kinds of trauma did these girls in detention and women in prison suffer growing up? What is the connection between trauma and changes in the brain? Why is trauma-informed care crucial to the treatment of girls and women and how can this care be best provided? These are among the questions addressed in this chapter. A basic assumption by the authors is that gender-responsive programs are necessarily trauma informed and culturally specific to reach the girls and women who need professional help. Exemplary practices in facility layout and empowering programming are described in the final pages of this chapter.
