Renny Golden is Professor of Criminal Justice, Sociology, and Social Work at Northeastern Illinois University. She is a criminologist, published poet, and well-known activist for social rights in El Salvador and Guatamala. Her previous publications include, Disposable Children:America's Child Welfare System and Oscar Romero:Reflections on His Life and Writings .

"In her book War on the Family Mothers in Prison and the Families They Leave Behind, Renny Golden brings to life the pains of imprisonment that incarcerated mothers and their children experience...By sharing the stories of incarcerated mothers and their children in two geographical regions, Golden offers an insightful picture of this typically forgotten group...the author examines the long-term impact of incarceration on the children of incarcerated parents, which few studies have done." -- Jennifer Cobbina, Criminal Justice Review, March 2008

• ForewordIntroductionChapter 1: Collateral Damage in the War on DrugsChapter 2: The Worlds They Inhabit: Joanetta's WorldChapter 3: Loss of Childhood: A Family's StoryChapter 4: Family Narratives of Survival and Sorrow: Bell, Melvanie, Nadia and LouellaChapter 5: Expendable Bodies, Racialized PoliciesChapter 6: Incarceration: Theater of TerrorChapter 7: Teen Mothers and the Infants Who Saved ThemChapter 8: Children in the Other AmericaChapter 9: Gonna Rise: Pam's StoryChapter 10: Eyes on the Prize: Theorizing ChangeChapter 11: What Is To Be Done in the Meantime?Chapter 12: Beating the OddsAddendum: List of Programs for Families of Incarcerated Mothers