--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's a monstrous idea to put people in…" description: "\"It's a monstrous idea to put people in prison and keep them there.\" — Molly Ivins" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/971/molly-ivins-1296_crime_it-s-a-monstrous-idea-to-put-people-in-p_826755.png" --- # It's a monstrous idea to put people in prison and keep… ![“It's a monstrous idea to put people in prison and keep them there.” quote by Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/971/molly-ivins-1296_crime_it-s-a-monstrous-idea-to-put-people-in-p_826755.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/971/molly-ivins-1296_crime_it-s-a-monstrous-idea-to-put-people-in-p_826755.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/971/molly-ivins-1296_crime_it-s-a-monstrous-idea-to-put-people-in-p_826755.png) > “It's a monstrous idea to put people in prison and keep them there.” [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Imprisonment is an extreme, inhumane solution that fails to address underlying societal issues. **In simple terms:** Prison is a harsh, ineffective fix. Key Takeaway Seek alternatives to incarceration. Themes justice reform human rights criminal policy Mood critical concerned Type opinion political When to use this quote - law enforcement - social services - community safety - policy making Key Concepts rehabilitation restorative justice Questions to Reflect On - What are humane alternatives to prison? - How does incarceration affect communities? A Different Perspective Security concerns often drive prison use. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idea/) [Idea People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idea-people/) [Keep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/keep/) [Monstrous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monstrous/) [Monstrous Idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monstrous-idea-523417/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-prison-324906/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/them/) ## Related quotes > [A sort of angry populism here in the UK and across Europe, a sort of anti-political mood and what then steps into that place?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-brooker/a-sort-of-angry-populism-here-in-the-uk-and-across-europe-a-sort-of/) [Charlie Brooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-brooker/) > [“I like visiting people in prison. 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Well,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bly/some-people-can-t-go-into-church-any-longer-to-feel-this-longing-but/) [Robert Bly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bly/) > [“By the end of the Clinton years, the United States had more than 2 million people in prison—a higher percentage of the population than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/by-the-end-of-the-clinton-years-the-united-states-had-more-than-2/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [I don't think there's been a time in American history with more innocent people in prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/i-don-t-think-there-s-been-a-time-in-american-history-with-more/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) > [ People can be in a prison of their own mind. \[There are\] people who don't have their hearts open to other people's ideas, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-hanna/people-can-be-in-a-prison-of-their-own-mind-there-are-people-who-don/) [Kathleen Hanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-hanna/) > [You don't send people to prison on the basis of what other people imagine, or on the basis of media sound bites like 'shooting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/you-don-t-send-people-to-prison-on-the-basis-of-what-other-people/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Nobody wants to get locked up, although 'locked up' is a matter of perspective. There can be people who are out who are in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-snipes/nobody-wants-to-get-locked-up-although-locked-up-is-a-matter-of/) [Wesley Snipes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-snipes/) > [Our priorities are all wrong if we only care about how long people are in prison for, and not what goes on inside them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/our-priorities-are-all-wrong-if-we-only-care-about-how-long-people/) [Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/) > [There are many innocent people in prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-banks/there-are-many-innocent-people-in-prison/) [Brian Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-banks/) > [Prison was tough on me. I saw people in prison that made me ashamed I was a human being. Some make Qaddafi and Idi…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evel-knievel/prison-was-tough-on-me-i-saw-people-in-prison-that-made-me-ashamed-i/) [Evel Knievel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evel-knievel/) > [You do not have to go to either criminalizing and throwing people in prison. I don't think you should do that for people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sabet/you-do-not-have-to-go-to-either-criminalizing-and-throwing-people-in/) [Kevin Sabet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sabet/) > [When I walked out of the gate I knew that if I continued to hate these people I was still in prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/when-i-walked-out-of-the-gate-i-knew-that-if-i-continued-to-hate/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [It doesn't help to fight crime to put people in prison who are innocent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/it-doesn-t-help-to-fight-crime-to-put-people-in-prison-who-are/) [Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/) ## More by Molly Ivins > [Preemptive war is what Israel did in '67 with Arab armies on its borders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/preemptive-war-is-what-israel-did-in-67-with-arab-armies-on-its/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [The idols of one's adolescence tend to endure - you never forget how you worshipped them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/the-idols-of-one-s-adolescence-tend-to-endure-you-never-forget-how/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Having breast cancer is massive amounts of no fun,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/having-breast-cancer-is-massive-amounts-of-no-fun/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [How the American right managed to convince itself that the programs to alleviate poverty are responsible for the consequences of poverty will someday be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/how-the-american-right-managed-to-convince-itself-that-the-programs/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [To mistake Midland for the volk heartland is the West Texas equivalent of assuming that Greenwich, Connecticut, is Levittown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/to-mistake-midland-for-the-volk-heartland-is-the-west-texas/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [I only aim at the powerful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/i-only-aim-at-the-powerful/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Even for southerners, Arkansans are amazingly friendly and extend hospitality to all strangers with astonishing openness. 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I don't want to make the same mistakes the criminals do! ;)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/taking-notes-while-watching-forensic-files-and-snapped-i-don-t-want/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Nations sometimes flourish by denying the crimes that brought them into being. 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