New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed legislation on Monday that “corrected” terminology used in state law to refer to prison “inmates” as “incarcerated individuals.”
According to a press release on Hochul’s website, the new legislation will “reduce harmful stigma against incarcerated people by correcting outdated terminology” in an effort to “promote greater fairness and restore dignity for individuals that have been affected by the criminal justice system.”
Legislation (A.9273/S.8216) replaces instances of the word "inmate" in state law with "incarcerated individual". Individuals impacted by the criminal justice system have long noted that terms such as felon, inmate, prisoner, and convict dehumanize individuals and perpetuate the idea that incarcerated people should be permanently demonized and stigmatized. This language change within state law will reduce stigma against people involved in the criminal justice system and therefore eliminate barriers to opportunities that they face. Previous legislation covered all instances of state law but did not cover active pieces of legislation in 2021 that were signed into law and included the term "inmate".
Republican state Sen. James Tedisco slammed the legislation, calling it a “woke criminals first law” and urged his supporters to help him pass a separate piece of “victim’s first” legislation and get Hochul out of office.
??Another "woke" Criminals 1st Law supported by our Governor instead of doing her job & protecting the public from rampant crime.
— Senator Jim Tedisco (@JamesTedisco) August 8, 2022
Help pass the bill I authored to Repeal Catch & Release Bail Reform & give judges real discretion (S.1523A), pass Victim's 1st Agenda & fire Hochul! https://t.co/kmm8y8ZROI
Michael Fraser, communications director for the New York State Assembly Republicans, wrote that “incarcerated individuals” are “running the asylum” in New York.
Welcome to Democrat-controlled New York ...
— Michael Fraser (@Frasmich) August 8, 2022
Where the "incarcerated individuals" are running the asylum. https://t.co/wA4zzAvPzz
New York Democrats Sen. Gustavo Rivera and Assemblymember Jeffrion L. Aubry praised Hochul’s signing of the legislation.
"Language matters. I am proud that my bill to replace all references of the word inmate with incarcerated individual in New York State law has been signed today by Governor Hochul,” Rivera said in a statement. “For too long, we as a society have thought of incarcerated individuals as less than people. The use of the word "inmate" further dehumanizes and demoralizes them.”
In a statement, Aubry said that "penological terms such as felon, inmate, prisoner, offender, and convict dehumanize, degrade, and stigmatize people. Using a term such as 'incarcerated individual' recognizes the humanity of people and exemplifies the redeemable value of human beings. This new law seeks to correct outdated terminology that adversely impacts an individual's transition back into their community."
Townhall covered how New York City Mayor Eric Adams said earlier this year that the city has become a “laughing stock” due to its rise in crime.
“Anything goes in the city of New York,” he said at NYPD Holy Name Society event. “The most important city on the globe has become the laughing stock of the globe.”
In his remarks, Adams noted that the violence in New York has caused a ripple effect in the rest of the United States.
“The dysfunctionality of our city has cascaded throughout the entire country,” he said.