Action by voluntary sector associations in detention, between instrumentalisation and subversion. The example of Genepi’s interventions in relation to penal administrations

This article analyzes the role of interventions in relation to detention, between instrumentalization and subversion, through the French example of Genepi, an association working within prisons between 1974 and 2019. These interventions were instrumentalized by the prison administration because they allowed budget cuts for the institution. They also served disciplinary and occupational logics. However, they were also a means of emancipation for prisoners, since they provided a space and a time for political expression, as well as social relations, and moral and material support thanks to the adoption of a subversive posture within detention by Genepi volunteers. The research used twelve semi-structured interviews with former members of the association holding various positions (presidents, vice-presidents, treasurers, local branch managers, etc.), supplemented by a questionnaire to collect socio-demographic data from respondents and thus quantify the social positions of the volunteers.