April 23, 1999
Author Jean Harris to Speak about “Women
and the Prison System” on April
29 at Middlebury College
Author Jean Harris will speak about “Women and
the Prison System” on Thursday, April 29 at 8 p.m. at the
Middlebury College Kirk Alumni Center on Route 30. The lecture
is free and open to the public.
In her 1986 book “Stranger in Two Worlds,”
Harris earns the attention and concern of the reader by telling
her own story—she was convicted of the murder of diet-book author
Dr. Herman Tarnower. Using the notoriety of the case as a hook
to draw the reader in, she then reveals her true topic-women in
prison. She makes the point that those who could do something
about the plight of women in prison, and their children, have
no idea what it is like to be there. Twelve years later Harris
is still deeply involved in educating people about the realities
of incarceration for women with children, and will speak about
this topic during her lecture.
While imprisoned at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility,
Harris founded the Children of Bedford Fund to help children—whose
mothers are incarcerated at the facility—to get a good education.
As president of the fund, she travels widely educating people
about the tremendous upheaval a jailed mother brings into the
life of her children.
Harris points out, “It is not just coincidence
that most people in jail and prison are poorly educated. Fewer
than half of incarcerated people have a high school diploma, and
many who do have one have been pushed from grade to grade without
any consideration of what they have learned or what they are ready
for. Some so-called high school graduates can barely read. The
cycle of ignorance feeds on itself and goes round and round.”
The Addison County Community Review Board and the
May Belle Chellis Women’s Resource Center at Middlebury College
are sponsoring Harris’ talk. Contact Mary S. Duffy, of the women’s
studies department at Middlebury College, at 802-443-5937 for
more information.