The term “Shanks” in prison refers to a handmade bladed weapon that is often associated with inmates. Yep, these are usually made by inmates, even just using stuff they receive in prison. Shanks are intended as a weapon to attack fellow inmates or even protect themselves from the tension that occurs in prison.
In addition to knowing how to make them greatly, inmates are also good at hiding shanks in areas that are hard for even corrections guards to reach. That’s why shanks are made thinly, making it easier for inmates to hide them in stacks of objects or in crevices in the prison’s construction—heating vents under beds are a very popular hiding place.
The discovery of shanks either in a prisoner’s cell or in the general area around the prison could lead to pending violence between prisoners. Some sources revealed that the violence that occurs in prison could be due to many factors, not just the problems of the inmates themselves.
Why Are They Called “Shanks”?
The word “shanks” used to call a prison weapon is such prison slang that it resembles a knife with a very thin tip. It generally applies to both edging and stabbing weapons. The word is recorded in the 1670s in the spelling “chive” as “cant” for knife. Its pronunciation is reflected in the spelling shiv that is recorded in underworld slang from 1915 and might have been used since the 1890s or earlier.
Etymologically, the word “cant” might come from the Romani, which means “chiv” for “blade.” The derived verb “shiv” means “to stab someone,” and the word “shivver” refers to an ancient or rarely used term for a criminal who attacks victims with a knife.
In forums, people argued that the word is associated with an arch support inside the shoe sole called a “shark” (back in the old days, like around the 1920s). They further associate it with prisoners who might take the shank out of the boot, then sharpen it and ventilate someone.
How Are Shanks Made in Prison?
The United States correctional facilities found a variety of shanks that are made out of anything—could be metal, plastic or word that is carefully sheared to sharp edges. Reportedly, inmates usually use the masonry walls of the cell to sharpen metal objects.
Inmates also made shanks from toothbrushes, combs, and spoons with a razor blade wound around the end or also a glass shard with fabric wrapped around with one end to form a handle. They generally found the materials to create shanks in a workshop, a prison toilet, or the rubbish bin.
Why Are Inmates Provoked to Make Shanks?
Weapons made by inmates will always be dangerous and threaten the safety of other inmates, corrections staff, and the public. Even so, there are a number of factors underlying why inmates are so aggressive, but secretly to make shanks in prison.
Motivation and opportunity become two underlying factors that lead inmates to make shanks. Generally, some inmates are encouraged to make weapons in an attempt to protect themselves against real threats. Others use it to intimidate people, leading to recognition of their power among the prison population. The boredom experienced by inmates could also be another reason to make something anti-mainstream or even banned in prison.
Another factor that drives inmates to make weapons in prison is due to bad prison management, which triggers violence prone to occur. The high population, especially in private prisons, causes them to be overcrowded, which can increase tensions among inmates, who find themselves with little breathing room.
The tension and violence that occur in prisons can give rise to strong instincts in inmates about how to protect themselves from possible attacks by other inmates. What happened next? Of course, they will try their best with limited materials to survive—making a weapon is one of them.
A bookworm and researcher especially related to law and citizenship education. I spend time every day in front of the internet and the campus library.
