What Do People in San Quentin Want from California’s Next Governor?
I first met Gov.
我第一次见到州长。
Gavin Newsom during one of his visits to San Quentin News , the newspaper written and run by incarcerated folks at the Bay Area prison.
加文·纽瑟姆 (Gavin Newsom) 在访问《圣昆汀新闻》(San Quentin News) 期间，该报纸由湾区监狱的囚犯撰写和运营。
He came into the media center—a rundown metal-framed building with broken windows and a broken heater—and shook everyone’s hand, listening to us and looking us in the eyes.
他走进媒体中心——一座破旧的金属框架建筑，窗户和加热器都坏了——与每个人握手，倾听我们的讲话，看着我们的眼睛。
I was impressed.
我印象深刻。
He treated us like humans.
他像对待人一样对待我们。
After the visit, on March 17, 2023, at a press conference inside San Quentin, Gov.
访问结束后，2023 年 3 月 17 日，州长在圣昆廷举行的新闻发布会上说：
Newsom announced that California was transitioning its oldest prison into a rehabilitation center in an effort to counter the failures and inequities of the punitive model.
纽瑟姆宣布，加州正在将其最古老的监狱转变为康复中心，以应对惩罚模式的失败和不平等。
Called the “ California Model ” by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), this effort feels like a lifeboat trying to navigate the stormy seas of electoral politics.
加州惩教与改造部 (CDCR) 称之为“加州模式”，这一努力就像一艘试图在选举政治的惊涛骇浪中航行的救生艇。
As Newsom leaves office, rumors and fears circulate about what a new administration could reverse, dismantle, or abandon.
随着纽瑟姆离任，关于新政府可能扭转、废除或放弃什么的谣言和担忧四处流传。
Meanwhile, as always, the political debate starts and ends with the catchphrase “public safety”; election season means tough-on-crime rhetoric gets wielded like a weapon of blunt-force trauma.
与此同时，一如既往，政治辩论以“公共安全”这一口号开始和结束。选举季意味着严厉打击犯罪的言辞会像钝器创伤武器一样被使用。
All this discussion and uncertainty have made me think more seriously about what people inside San Quentin want from California’s next governor.
所有这些讨论和不确定性让我更加认真地思考圣昆汀内部的人们希望从加州下一任州长那里得到什么。
Democratic nominee Xavier Becerra, who used aggressive tactics during his time as California’s top prosecutor, has supported progressive reforms in some instances while resisting others, including public disclosure of certain police misconduct records.
民主党候选人泽维尔·贝塞拉(Xavier Becerra)在担任加州最高检察官期间使用了激进的策略，他在某些情况下支持渐进式改革，但在其他情况下却抵制，包括公开披露某些警察不当行为记录。
His Republican opponent, Steve Hilton, has criticized California’s recent criminal justice policies as too lenient, while calling for more prison capacity and tighter limits on early release.
他的共和党对手史蒂夫·希尔顿批评加州最近的刑事司法政策过于宽松，同时呼吁增加监狱容量并严格限制提前释放。
“It’s very simple.
“这很简单。
More prisons, less crime, and that’s what we are going to do,” Hilton said during the first major statewide debate in February.
更多的监狱，更少的犯罪，这就是我们要做的，”希尔顿在二月份的第一次全州范围内的重大辩论中说道。
His campaign also calls for expanded treatment and education programs in prison.
他的竞选活动还呼吁扩大监狱中的治疗和教育计划。
Both candidates support Proposition 36, which increased mandatory sentencing for certain retail and drug crimes.
两位候选人都支持第 36 号提案，该提案增加了对某些零售和毒品犯罪的强制量刑。
Many of the people in San Quentin, who broadly support the California Model, fear the worst, regardless of their politics.
圣昆汀的许多人广泛支持加州模式，无论他们的政治立场如何，他们都担心最坏的情况发生。
“I still have to believe that the people at San Quentin want continuity,” Chan S.
“我仍然相信圣昆汀的员工希望延续下去，”Chan S.
Park, a longtime San Quentin resident who identifies as a Republican, said.
帕克是圣昆廷的长期居民，自称是共和党人，他说。
“The changes that began under Gavin Newsom still haven’t solidified in that feeling of permanence yet, and so I believe there’s probably a degree of trepidation and fear that no one knows what’s going to happen once a new governor comes in.”
“加文·纽瑟姆(Gavin Newsom)领导下开始的变革尚未在这种持久感中得到巩固，因此我相信，可能会有一定程度的惶恐和恐惧，因为没有人知道一旦新州长上任后会发生什么。”
Park is now counting down the final months of a sentence that began in 1992.
帕克现在正在倒计时从 1992 年开始的刑期的最后几个月。
Asked why prison reform and mass incarceration have received relatively little attention in the governor’s race, Park pointed to the competing political pressures candidates face.
当被问及为什么监狱改革和大规模监禁在州长竞选中受到的关注相对较少时，朴指出了候选人面临的相互竞争的政治压力。
Public concern about crime remains real, he said, while California also faces the enormous financial costs associated with incarceration and other public services.
他说，公众对犯罪的担忧仍然存在，而加州也面临着与监禁和其他公共服务相关的巨大财务成本。
“The whole system of lock them up and throw away the key is no longer sustainable,” Park said.
“把钥匙锁起来然后扔掉钥匙的整个系统不再可持续，”帕克说。
“Do you spend more money on incarceration, while schools are getting shut down and social services continue to be reduced?”
“当学校关闭、社会服务继续减少时，你是否会在监禁上花更多的钱？”
What Park values most about the California Model is that it brings together a broader range of stakeholders—including community-based organizations, prison volunteers, reform advocates, abolitionists, families of incarcerated people, and mental health experts—rather than leaving criminal justice policy solely in the hands of law enforcement, prosecutors, or the courts.
帕克最看重加州模式的一点是，它汇集了更广泛的利益相关者，包括社区组织、监狱志愿者、改革倡导者、废奴主义者、被监禁者家属和心理健康专家，而不是将刑事司法政策完全交由执法部门、检察官或法院处理。
Steve Drown, 76, who has been incarcerated for 49 years, worries that a change in political leadership could reverse restorative justice and rehabilitation efforts taken up under the California Model, which emphasizes accountability, healing, education, reentry into society, and better relationships between incarcerated people, staff, and communities.
76 岁的史蒂夫·德罗恩 (Steve Drown) 已被监禁 49 年，他担心政治领导层的变化可能会扭转加州模式下采取的恢复性司法和康复努力，该模式强调责任、康复、教育、重返社会以及被监禁者、工作人员和社区之间更好的关系。
This includes greater emphasis on practices such as facilitated victim-offender dialogue and accountability work aimed at helping incarcerated people understand and repair harm.
这包括更加重视促进受害人与犯罪者对话和问责工作等做法，旨在帮助被监禁者理解和修复伤害。
Drown said the public does not fully understand “what we the incarcerated go through, what we are experiencing, [and] the efforts we are making to change” before people return to society.
德朗表示，公众并不完全理解“我们这些被监禁者在重返社会之前所经历的事情、正在经历的事情以及我们正在为改变所做的努力”。
Ron Touchard, another resident who identifies as a Republican, said that if Hilton becomes California’s next governor, his administration should continue the reforms begun under Newsom.
另一位共和党居民罗恩·图查德表示，如果希尔顿成为加州下一任州长，他的政府应该继续纽森领导下开始的改革。
He doesn’t necessarily see the California Model as a Democratic policy.
他不一定将加州模式视为民主党政策。
Touchard also wants continued funding for San Quentin, improvements to living quarters and cells in the older buildings, and upgrades to spaces such as the kitchen and canteen.
Touchard 还希望继续为 San Quentin 提供资金，改善旧建筑中的居住区和牢房，以及升级厨房和食堂等空间。
Miguel Sifuentes has been incarcerated for 27 years, the last 11 at San Quentin.
米格尔·西富恩特斯 (Miguel Sifuentes) 已被监禁 27 年，最后 11 年被关押在圣昆廷 (San Quentin)。
He is concerned that a focus on carceral conditions does not address the larger inequities in the legal system.
他担心，对监禁条件的关注并不能解决法律体系中更大的不平等问题。
“The new San Quentin is unprecedented for those of us who lived under the oppressive culture of violence at other prisons,” Sifuentes said.
“对于我们这些生活在其他监狱暴力压迫文化下的人来说，新的圣昆廷监狱是前所未有的，”西富恩特斯说。
He asked: “Who is responsible for fixing the horror and hopelessness that comes from the endless cycle of extremely long sentences?”
他问道：“谁负责解决因极长句子的无休止循环而带来的恐惧和绝望？”
Sifuentes was not optimistic that any election alone can lead to deeper reform, and that incremental changes, while “incredibly valuable,” often “fall far short of the timeless measures of redemption and healing.” Incarcerated people must confront “the fact that no one may be coming to save us,” he added.
西富恩特斯并不乐观地认为，任何选举本身都能带来更深入的改革，渐进式的变革虽然“非常有价值”，但往往“远远达不到永恒的救赎和治愈措施”。他补充说，被监禁的人们必须面对“一个事实：可能没有人来拯救我们”。
What is going to happen five or 10 years from now?
五年或十年后会发生什么？
The reality is that San Quentin’s new buildings, as well as the California Model, can be shut down or repurposed for the next administration’s agenda, depending on who wins the governor’s office and what priorities that administration brings with it.
现实情况是，圣昆汀的新建筑以及加州模式可以被关闭或重新用于下一届政府的议程，具体取决于谁赢得了州长职位以及政府带来的优先事项。
I ask myself, is the California Model just a quick fix to put a good face on prison reform?
我问自己，加州模式只是为监狱改革打好基础的一个快速解决方案吗？
Or is this a real move toward rehabilitation, restorative justice, and true public safety?
或者这是朝着康复、恢复性司法和真正的公共安全迈出的真正一步？
As an incarcerated man who has spent 32 years inside and cannot vote, I would encourage the candidates, and whoever will ultimately be the next governor, to come to San Quentin and walk around and talk with the staff and residents, to witness rehabilitation up close for themselves before making up their minds.
作为一名在狱中度过了 32 年且无法投票的人，我鼓励候选人以及最终成为下一任州长的人来到圣昆廷，四处走动并与工作人员和居民交谈，在做出决定之前亲眼目睹康复过程。
And if they do, I hope they are willing to shake our hands and look us in the eyes like the governor before them.
如果他们这样做，我希望他们愿意与我们握手，并像他们面前的州长一样看着我们的眼睛。
Edwin E.
埃德温·E.
Chavez is a bilingual incarcerated journalist and writer with Empowerment Avenue’s Writing for Liberation program.
查韦斯是一名双语被监禁记者和作家，参与赋权大道的“写作解放”项目。
He is a staff writer and Spanish Journalism Guild chair for San Quentin News .
他是圣昆汀新闻社的特约撰稿人和西班牙新闻协会主席。
His work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times , Solitary Watch , Wall City Magazine , and other outlets.
他的作品曾出现在《洛杉矶时报》、《Solitary Watch》、《Wall City Magazine》和其他媒体上。
Primary editor: Talib Jabbar | Secondary editor: Sarah Rothbard
主编：Talib Jabbar |二级编辑：莎拉·罗斯巴德
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