Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is plagued by staff shortages that are having damaging effects on female prisoners’ care and critical services, re- ported Jeff Mordock of The Washington Times. The BOP is experiencing a shortfall of trained staff nationwide. This shortage has prompted the Justice Department’s Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz to call for an increase in trained prison employees because it has been restricting the access of female prisoners to necessary care and services. “The lack of sufficient staff is most noticeable at larger … [Read more...] about Damaging effects on female prisoners’ care and critical services
incarcerated women
Incarcerated women bringing #MeToo movement to prisons
Women on the outside are doing their work to bring incarcerated women into the #MeToo movement. According to a piece from The Fire Inside, the newsletter for the California Coalition of Women Prisoners (CCWP), more than 80 percent of incarcerated women are survivors of sexual abuse or violence. The piece asserts that the threat of sexual abuse increases when women are behind bars and usually these women don’t have anyone to whom to report their trauma. Now, a national movement around sexual violence is reaching them. “Fear and shame kept me … [Read more...] about Incarcerated women bringing #MeToo movement to prisons
Former female prisoners fighting for the ones they left behind
The voices of formerly incarcerated women are rising as they mobilize around the nation to change prison conditions for the women prisoners they left behind. “Twenty States by 2020” is a campaign to help pass the “Dignity for Incarcerated Women Act” across the nation. The campaign is being led by the #Cut50 organization and its campaign director, Topeka Sam, who was formerly incarcerated. Sam served time in federal facilities on the East Coast. The campaign has been successful in passing the legislation in seven states, including California, … [Read more...] about Former female prisoners fighting for the ones they left behind
NC introduces bill prohibiting shackling during childbirth
North Carolina’s Democratic legislators have introduced a bill that would prohibit the shackling of incarcerated women while they give birth. After a story came out about two women who gave birth at a Triangle region hospital with their hands and feet shackled, advocates complained to prison officials about the practice, according to a North Carolina Health News article. “When someone is handcuffed to a bed, they can’t roll over, can’t get up and walk freely,” Sarah Gillooly, with North Carolina’s American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) told … [Read more...] about NC introduces bill prohibiting shackling during childbirth
CA leads nation in women on Death Row
California leads the nation with 23 women on Death Row, but the condemned women are largely invisible and forgotten behind bars, and their stories rarely see the light of day. California has more than three times the number of condemned women in Texas (six on condemn) and in Alabama (five on condemn), according a Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC) report. The women on California’s Death Row are housed in Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) in Chowchilla. Until 1933, they were housed in San Quentin in the Women’s Ward. They … [Read more...] about CA leads nation in women on Death Row
Formerly incarcerated author, Donna Hylton
Donna Hylton, who was abused as a child, spent 27 years in prison and wrote a book about how she turned her life around. She said her mission today is to be “a voice for the silenced” women still in prison. At age 20, Hylton was sentenced to 25 years to life for her role as a nonviolent accessory to kidnapping and second-degree murder. She is finally freed. Hylton’s childhood was a living hell. She was abandoned by her mother in Jamaica, N.Y., at age 8, according to the article by The Glow Up. At that time, she was subjected to … [Read more...] about Formerly incarcerated author, Donna Hylton
Arizona provides inmates feminine-hygiene products
The Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) is changing its policy concerning the supply of free feminine-hygiene products for woman prisoners, after overwhelming support from formerly incarcerated women and the outside community, reports The Republic. “I want to thank all of the women and men from all around Arizona and all over the world who spoke up, who bravely testified and shared their stories, and those who contacted lawmakers directly,” said Rep. Athena Salman (D-Tempe.) “Your voices made the difference.” The change in policy will … [Read more...] about Arizona provides inmates feminine-hygiene products
Female parolees’ hard road to successful re-entry
Following her parole, Davina, 50, got a temporary job on a website contract, but her parole officer insisted that she find full-time work because, he said, contract work is “too non-traditional,” reported Alejandra Molina in the Riverside Press-Enterprise. Another woman was called “lazy” by her parole officer for attending a trade school and not finding full-time work three months after her release. “I’m trying to figure out my education so I can have a good job,” said the woman, identified only as Shonda. “I want to get my education right so … [Read more...] about Female parolees’ hard road to successful re-entry