A JOE reader has sent us an articulate and reasoned letter about our attitudes to criminality.
Following the broadcast of an interview with Michaella McCollum on RTÉ on Sunday night, people have been divided over whether or not the convicted criminal deserved to be such a platform to talk about her experiences in a Peruvian prison.
JOE reader, and assistant psychologist, Grace Kealy has written to us about our attitudes to criminality, insisting that a criminal act does not immediately make someone a bad person.
It begins…
In response to the recent criticism and harsh judgement of Michaella McCollum, I would like to share a talk I was at a few years ago that has stayed with me ever since.
We tend to view criminality in a very black and white way. When in reality, it is not a matter of goodies versus baddies, or moral corruption.
People tend to fall into criminal behaviour due to a variety of psycho-social factors. I guarantee that nearly every person behind bars has a unique story to tell, stories that contains hardship, psychological suffering, and pain.
Society at large also has a role to play in this – factors like poverty, social inequality, lack of education, outlet, or opportunity – can all play a part in a person turning to criminal behaviour. This is reflected in the demographics of criminal populations worldwide.
People are a lot more than their mistakes.
There is a pearl and shadow side to each of us, and given harsh enough conditions or a culture that condones it (or where it is normalised/minimised), any one of us could end up in dire straits.
I’m not condoning criminal behaviour, but I am suggesting that we look at it with a wider lens.
Understanding the reasons as to why a person would engage in criminality in the first place gives us more potential to prevent it, thus protecting society at large. However, by burying our heads in the sand, taking the moral high ground, and refusing to look at the bigger picture we serve only to isolate, marginalise and misunderstand the issue.
This leads to further rates of recidivism and harm.
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