To Care is Not to Punish: Rethinking Trauma Among Incarcerated Women

This article offers a critical rethinking of trauma-informed care (TIC) within prison systems, particularly in relation to incarcerated women. From a feminist and intersectional perspective, it questions whether genuine care is possible in institutions designed to punish, where imprisonment itself often perpetuates and exacerbates trauma. The high prevalence of mental health disorders among incarcerated women is deeply linked to histories of structural violence, poverty, racism, and institutional neglect. Traditional frameworks such as the importation and deprivation models fall short without a holistic understanding of these intersecting factors. Although some TIC programs have shown promise, their impact remains limited without systemic transformation. The prison, as a masculinized institution, fails to meet the specific needs of women and often reproduces harm under the guise of order. This article argues that true care in prison may be ethically contradictory if the punitive structure remains intact. Instead, it advocates for alternatives grounded in restorative justice, community care, and social repair. A meaningful TIC approach must go beyond individual interventions to demand a structural shift: fewer prisons, more social justice, and a redefinition of care as liberation rather than damage control. Justice, it contends, should heal, not manage suffering.