HELLHOLE

by Sara Harris ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 22, 1967

Sara Harris, a professional expose-tor (Skid Row, U.S.A., Cast the First Stone with Judge Murtagh, etc.) of the seamy side of American life, here tells ""The Shocking Story of the Inmates and Life in the New York City House of Detention for Women."" The House of Detention was brought to the public eye when two civil rights defendants from Bennington and Bard were incarcerated for five days in February, 1965. The author spends some time with them, more with the more typical inmates: prostitutes, narcotics addicts, drifters from the Bowery. She describes the ""racket"" which such ""kings"" as psychopathic bulldyke Rusty runs in prison, terrorizing at the top of the hierarchy which includes femmes and unaffiliated individuals, who have it the roughest. The women tell their own stories: background, how they got into ""the business"" or became addicts. From the cultured call girl to the uneducated, aged tramp, the inmates have their reasons for being there, not always the ones given--Mrs. Harris thinks a war on poverty and oppression is the only cure, has ideas for narcotic addicts (treat them in the community), vagrants (half-way houses), etc. Scanty on the administration, this concentrates on raw--very raw--life materials at and outside the House.

Pub Date: May 22, 1967

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Dutton

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1967

Categories: NONFICTION