A large proportion—and in many jurisdictions the majority—of incarcerated women are mothers. Popular attention is often paid to challenges faced by children of incarcerated mothers while incarcerated women themselves often do not “count” as mothers in mainstream discourse. This is the first anthology on incarcerated mothers’ experiences that is primarily based on and reflects the Canadian context. It is also trans- national in scope as it covers related issues from other countries around the world. These essays examine connections between mothering and incarceration, from anal- ysis of the justice system and policies, criminalization of motherhood, to understand- ing experiences of mothers in prisons as presented in their own voices. They highlight structures and processes which shape and ascribe incarcerated woman’s identity as a mother, juxtaposing it with scripted and imposed mainstream norms of a “good” or “real” mother. Moreover, these essays identify and track emergence of mothers’ resistance and agency within and in spite of the confines of their circumstances.

Gordana Eljdupovic, Ph.D., C. Psych., is a clinical and forensic psychologist whose doctoral research focussed on incarcerated women’s experiences of mother- ing. Upon completion of her doctoral degree, she worked with incarcerated women in a Canadian prison for a number of years. She feels immensely privileged, honoured and humbled by their trust. Dr. Eljdupovic has presented her work at a number of different local, regional, and international settings. She is currently an Associate Researcher with the Center for Community Research, Learning and Action (ccrla) at Wilfrid Laurier University, and she continues to work in areas where gender, policy, the justice system, and mental health concerns intersect. She is mother to two wonderful children: a daughter and a son.

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Rebecca Jaremko Bromwich has a B.A. (Hon.) in social/ cultural anthropology from the University of Calgary, an LL.B. and an LL.M. from Queen’s and a Graduate Certificate in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies from the University of Cincinnati. This book is adapted from her Ph.D. dissertation, which she completed at Carleton University, in the Department of Legal Studies. In her Ph.D. research, Rebecca is working towards an understanding of what insights from the field of critical studies and cultural theory of girls studies can bring to law and legal studies.Called to the Bar of Ontario in 2003, Rebecca works as a lawyer, and has previously researched and published in a variety of areas, including youth criminal justice law, law practice management and equality issues relating to women and members of other historically marginalized groups in the legal profession as well as contributing as author and co-editor to several Demeter Press anthologies. She is a Contract Instructor at Carleton’s Department of Law and Legal Studies, a PartTime Professor at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law, and a staff lawyer, legislation and law reform with the Canadian Bar Association. All views expressed in this book are hers alone and do not reflect the views of any organization with which she is or has ever been affiliated.

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