STATE SHORTS KIDS OF INMATE MOMS

We know that children unjustly suffer the consequences of the bad choices
that their parents make.

And when a mother is imprisoned, a recent state study indicates, her
children will be three times more likely to suffer from depression and
twice as likely to do poorly in school.

It's not hard to figure out what happens from there - the children end up
caught in the same cycle of destructive behavior that their parents experience.

As a society, we have a responsibility to try and break that cycle.

The state Legislature authorized the recent study by the Oklahoma
Commission on Children and Youth and is reviewing the most recent findings
to determine what can be done to stop that ruinous cycle.

For drug-addicted women, the report recommends alternatives to prison, such
as reporting centers and nighttime jail.

Oklahoma has the highest per capita women's incarceration rate of any
state, so alternatives should be seriously considered. We favor treatment
and counseling over imprisonment for non-violent crimes, so it's disturbing
that the study discovered one out of three women in Oklahoma prisons do not
receive drug and alcohol treatment. That is inexcusable.

Also disturbing is the report that more than one-third of the children of
imprisoned women are left in an abusive home. The separation of families is
not desirable, but children should never be left in a home in which abuse
is highly likely.

Oklahoma can use the excuses that resources are limited, economic
conditions are not the best and drugs are pervasive. But excuses don't make
Oklahoma a better place to live. And they don't help those children who
suffer disadvantages not only because they experience family problems, but
also because no one else is there to support them.

[Sidebar]

How To Help

For volunteer opportunities and information about theOklahoma Commission on
Children and Youth go to www.okkids.org/volunteer.htm on the Web.