To Close or Not to Close Rikers: A Necessary Debate

Ever since New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito started a debate on her “More Justice” speech over – among other things – possible long-term plans to close Rikers Island, several voices have given their opinion on the topic.

Whether closing the correctional facility is viable or not will be defined over time as an independent commission evaluates a “community based justice model” focused on issues such as reducing pre-trial detention rates and the possibility of moving teenagers and mentally ill inmates off Rikers Island.

At this moment, it is healthy to keep the debate open on the future of a prison that ‒ as Mark-Viverito herself put it ‒ has stood out for being a symbol of vengeance rather than justice.

Rikers holds nearly 10,000 detainees on any given day, many of whom are youths. Others suffer from mental illness. According to a 2015 report, stabbings at this and other facilities have gone up by 45 percent. Friction between correctional officers and inmates has also increased.

The current conditions of violence and squalor at Rikers are not new. A 2014 report by attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara revealed a pattern of excessive force at Rikers. He described the prison as “a broken institution… a place where brute force is the first impulse rather than the last resort.”

To the current administration’s credit, some steps have been taken to attempt to reform the monster institution that is Rikers. One of the most recent measures included changes regarding solitary confinement.

However, when chronic issues such as the ones currently occurring at Rikers exist, it may be time to root out evil.

When the time comes to make a final decision, it will become crucial that a sense of social justice prevail over political calculations.