Here's Your Sign--"Out of Bounds"

 It's no secret that prisons are surrounded by multiple layers of chain link fences or high walls topped by razor wire. It's a security thing--you know, to keep prisoners in and would be accomplices out. What many people don't realize is that inside the surrounding fences are locations prisoners are not allowed. "Out of Bounds" signs mark these places. Prisoners caught where they aren't supposed to be are subject to "Out of Place" misconduct tickets and sanctions.

Laws function as societal "Out of Bounds" signs. Laws tell citizens what they can and can't do, and they impose sanctions for violating those boundaries. Sometimes those sanctions include prison time, where boundary signs within boundary fences surround violators. It's a bit ironic. 

Most of the time, the law's boundaries need little explanation. Robbing people is bad. Murding people is bad. Raping people is bad. So is cheating on your taxes, but if you have enough money and privilege...well, you might get away with that. The point is that most of us don't need an explanation for why these behaviors are prohibited by law. We have moral compasses that tell us these prohibitions are self-evident. Except when they don't. 

Given the right circumstances, humans can justify just about any behavior. While we're the only species with a moral will, our moral wills are flawed by our propensity to rationalize whatever fits our desires. And rarely do we violate big moral no-nos without priming our justifications with smaller, compounding compromises first. It's just human nature. 

That's why moral formation is so imperative in prison environments. Frankly, it's imperative in schools, homes, churches, and anywhere else that might interrupt the river of humanity heading towards incarceration or moral faillure in America. But teaching morality treads awfully close to teaching religion, so we've stripped that instruction from the very places that could help stave off the moral ruin that lands people in prison. Instead, we teach a strange form of tolerance--the kind that tolerates anything but religion and morality. 

But I digress. 

When our moral compasses get broken through compromises, trauma, or the many ways it can, we must learn to re-establish boundaries in our lives. First, we need someone who can help us learn to recognize compromised thinking and behavior. Then, we need to recognize what causes us to be at risk for those thoughts and behaviors. This is where we place "Out of Bounds" signs in our lives. Finally, we need to establish pre-planned responses for when we approach a boundary sign. 

Recovery groups, like Alcoholics Anonymous and Celebrate Recovery, and relapse prevention plans offer guidance for prisoners (and free citizens!) to re-establish moral boundaries in their lives and to develop appropriate responses. But first, people have to understand they have boundary problems. 

It's no fun being surrounded by razor wire fences and limited by boundary signs. But there's a sense of freedom that comes with properly placed moral boundaries. The consequences of violating those boundaries are much, much harder than learning to live within them--trust me, I should know.