On 25 January 2016, Barack Obama’s “Why we must rethink solitary confinement” appeared in the Washington Post. In the article, Obama aims to persuade the readers to act on and improve solitary confinement for the betterment of the society. Solitary confinement is the practice of isolating people in closed cells with no human contact. The period of such confinements can range from days to months, even decades sometimes. Obama uses the techniques of personal anecdote, credible references, and logical use of data.
First, Obama starts off the article with an emotional story of Kalief Browder, describing his experience for two years in solitary confinement. This starts the essay with an emotional tone, and interests the readers to pay more attention. …show more content…
He states that “overall crime rates have decreased by more than 15 percent.” By using such data to demonstrate that his actions have reduced crime, Obama logically appeals to the readers that just like he acted on reducing crime, his stance on solitary confinement would also be logically beneficial to support, and is already benefiting with his evidence of different states cutting off solitary confinement . He also showed evidence of the benefits of cutting off solitary confinement when he stated that “Colorado cut the number of people in solitary confinement, and assaults against staff are the lowest they’ve been since 2006. “ Obama also provides examples similar to Colorado’s statistics, with New Mexico and the federal prisons, where reducing solitary confinement led to a “25 percent decrease in assaults against staff.”Obama also provides studies from results that solitary confinement has been linked to depression, alienation, and many other mental illnesses. Such conditions are not productive boosts for the society, prompting anti-solitary confinement feelings. Thus, Obama uses accurate information from reliable sources to make logical reasoning against solitary
First, Obama starts off the article with an emotional story of Kalief Browder, describing his experience for two years in solitary confinement. This starts the essay with an emotional tone, and interests the readers to pay more attention. …show more content…
He states that “overall crime rates have decreased by more than 15 percent.” By using such data to demonstrate that his actions have reduced crime, Obama logically appeals to the readers that just like he acted on reducing crime, his stance on solitary confinement would also be logically beneficial to support, and is already benefiting with his evidence of different states cutting off solitary confinement . He also showed evidence of the benefits of cutting off solitary confinement when he stated that “Colorado cut the number of people in solitary confinement, and assaults against staff are the lowest they’ve been since 2006. “ Obama also provides examples similar to Colorado’s statistics, with New Mexico and the federal prisons, where reducing solitary confinement led to a “25 percent decrease in assaults against staff.”Obama also provides studies from results that solitary confinement has been linked to depression, alienation, and many other mental illnesses. Such conditions are not productive boosts for the society, prompting anti-solitary confinement feelings. Thus, Obama uses accurate information from reliable sources to make logical reasoning against solitary