Prison riot

A prison riot is an act of concerted defiance or disorder by a group of prisoners against the prison administrators, prison officers, or other groups of prisoners.

Academic studies of prison riots emphasize a connection between prison conditions (such as prison overcrowding) and riots,  or discuss the dynamics of the modern prison riot. In addition, a large proportion of academic studies concentrate on specific cases of prison riots. Other recent research analyzes and examines prison strikes and reports of contention with inmate workers.

Prison conditions
In the late 20th century, the analyses and conclusions presented to account for prison disturbances and riots began to shift and change based upon new studies and research. Initially, prison riots were considered irrational actions on the behalf of the prisoners. Nevertheless, there has been a shift in the form of explanation as external conditions like overcrowding are promoted by authorities as possible sources of causation.

List of notable prison riots
The list does not include prisoner-of-war camps.

Gulag uprisings

 * Norilsk uprising, May 1953 – strike
 * Vorkuta uprising, July 1953 – 66 killed
 * Kengir uprising, May 1954 – 37 killed (official Soviet figure), 500–700 killed (prisoner provided figure)