Karlene Faith
Encyclopedia
Karlene Faith is a "leading" Canadian
writer
, feminist, scholar, and human rights
activist
. She is a professor
emerita
at the Simon Fraser University
School of Criminology
.
, the House Un-American Activities Committee
, and other important events.
At 30 years old, Faith had worked in the United States, Germany, France, and Eritrea studying music, going to school, teaching, and working with the U.S. Peace Corps. In 1970 she earned her anthropology degree with Highest Honors at the University of California at Santa Cruz. She received a Danforth Fellowship to study for four more years at this same university, earning her PhD in 1981. She has co-hosted the radio show "Criminal Justice on Trial," taught with Dr. Rafael Guzman at Soledad men's prison, and completed groundbreaking research at the California Institution for Women. She also played a large role in developing the Santa Cruz Women's Prison Project in 1972.
. Her first book Unruly Women: The Politics of Confinement and Resistance was first published in 1993 through Press Gang
and has been called "path breaking" because of its historical overview of draconian social control practices. It went on to win the VanCity Book Prize in 1994. A new edition
of this book will be available through Seven Stories Press
in July 2011. In 1997, Faith wrote Madonna: Bawdy & Soul. Later, in 2001, Northeastern University Press published Faith's book The Long Prison Journey of Leslie van Houten: Life Beyond the Cult.
Faith was the recipient of the dean of arts medal for research, teaching, and service focus from Simon Fraser University in 2002. In 2000 she received the International Helen prize for Humanitarian Works, and in 2001 she received a lifetime achievement award from the American Society for Criminology.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, feminist, scholar, and human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist
Activism
Activism consists of intentional efforts to bring about social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing...
. She is a professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
emerita
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
at the Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University is a Canadian public research university in British Columbia with its main campus on Burnaby Mountain in Burnaby, and satellite campuses in Vancouver and Surrey. The main campus in Burnaby, located from downtown Vancouver, was established in 1965 and has more than 34,000...
School of Criminology
Criminology
Criminology is the scientific study of the nature, extent, causes, and control of criminal behavior in both the individual and in society...
.
Early Life and Career
Karlene Faith was born in Aylsham, Saskatchewan in 1938. She is the oldest of six children and her father was a United Church Minister. After moving to a small town in Montana near a jail, Faith often witnessed police brutality. While working at a local radio station as a record librarian, she was given air play to read teletype news on the Korean WarKorean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
, the House Un-American Activities Committee
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
, and other important events.
At 30 years old, Faith had worked in the United States, Germany, France, and Eritrea studying music, going to school, teaching, and working with the U.S. Peace Corps. In 1970 she earned her anthropology degree with Highest Honors at the University of California at Santa Cruz. She received a Danforth Fellowship to study for four more years at this same university, earning her PhD in 1981. She has co-hosted the radio show "Criminal Justice on Trial," taught with Dr. Rafael Guzman at Soledad men's prison, and completed groundbreaking research at the California Institution for Women. She also played a large role in developing the Santa Cruz Women's Prison Project in 1972.
Activism
Karlene Faith "views violence against women and children as a universal social problem... she contends that these problems are socially learned and that the extent and distribution of them vary across different social groups and locations." Faith plays a large role in both global and local pressing social issues, and as a teacher, she is "deeply committed to providing her students with an exciting and liberating pedagogical experience."Writing and Awards
She has written many books on women and their incarcerationIncarceration of women
This article discusses the incarceration of women in correctional facilities.-History:In the United States, authorities began housing women in correctional facilities separate from men in the 1870s...
. Her first book Unruly Women: The Politics of Confinement and Resistance was first published in 1993 through Press Gang
Press Gang Publishers
Press Gang Publishing was a [feminist]] printing and publishing collective active in [Vancouver, BC, Canada between the early 1970s and 2002.-Early history:...
and has been called "path breaking" because of its historical overview of draconian social control practices. It went on to win the VanCity Book Prize in 1994. A new edition
Edition (book)
The bibliographical definition of an edition includes all copies of a book printed “from substantially the same setting of type,” including all minor typographical variants.- First edition :...
of this book will be available through Seven Stories Press
Seven Stories Press
Seven Stories Press is an independent publishing company. Located in New York City, the company was founded by editor Dan Simon in 1995 after he parted company with Four Walls Eight Windows. The company was named for its seven founding authors: Annie Ernaux, Gary Null, the estate of Nelson Algren,...
in July 2011. In 1997, Faith wrote Madonna: Bawdy & Soul. Later, in 2001, Northeastern University Press published Faith's book The Long Prison Journey of Leslie van Houten: Life Beyond the Cult.
Faith was the recipient of the dean of arts medal for research, teaching, and service focus from Simon Fraser University in 2002. In 2000 she received the International Helen prize for Humanitarian Works, and in 2001 she received a lifetime achievement award from the American Society for Criminology.