Dear Elected Official,
As your constituent, I am writing in support of the Correctional Facility Disaster Preparedness Act (S.2592),1 which was re-introduced by Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) in August 2021.
This critical bill must be moved through the Senate. The social and economic havoc wreaked by the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change on American correctional facilities (CFs) has called attention to the need to improve our responses to disasters that cause avoidable damage to lives and property.2 Most CFs are not equipped to manage any kind of natural or human-made disaster, as there are currently no federal laws in place dictating disaster preparedness protocols in CFs. This leaves the nearly two million disproportionately Black, Brown, and/or poor individuals who are incarcerated, and the 400,000+ people who work in CFs, vulnerable to said disasters.4 5 6 7 8
Disasters in the past have shown what happens when there are no plans in place to properly manage them.9 10 11 12 13 There have been issues with vaccine/PPE distribution, staffing, CF overcrowding, and data reporting relative to COVID-19.14 15 16 At present, over half a million cases of the SARS-CoV-2 virus have been reported from within CFs nationally, and 2,869 of their residents have been killed by the virus.17 That’s 2,869 people who did not get their families’ comfort or final goodbyes. This is unacceptable.
No one deserves to die behind bars, and CFs have a constitutional obligation to protect the health, safety, and rights of their residents and staff.18 (S.2592) addresses these obligations by instructing the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to create an annual summary report recording “the ability of the Bureau of Prisons and any existing contract prison to uphold the health, safety, and civil rights of the correctional population” among facilities impacted by disasters.19
The bill would also appoint officials responsible for carrying out the corrective plans, make amendments to the members of the National Institute of Corrections’ Advisory Board that will broaden its expertise, and require the National Institute of Corrections to hold a public field hearing on how these goals will be achieved. All of this will ensure that CFs and staff, especially correctional officers, have the support they need during emergencies. For example, having fewer incarcerated individuals will increase officers’ safety and reduce their management burden.20 21
However, as long as we continue to ignore this lack of planning, the criminal justice system will not be able to respond proactively and in the interest of human dignity in times of crises. Black and Brown people will continue to die behind bars. They are human beings, and their lives matter. To protect the health and safety of this population across the United States, we ask that you continue your work to pass the Correctional Facility Disaster Preparedness Act (S.2592).
1 https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/2592/text?1=1&s=1
2 https://www.climate.gov/news-features/blogs/beyond-data/2010-2019-landmark-decade-us-billion-dollar-weather-and-climate
3 https://repository.library.northeastern.edu/files/neu:1039/fulltext.pdf
4 https://www.sentencingproject.org/publications/un-report-on-racial-disparities/
5 https://psci.princeton.edu/tips/2020/8/15/racial-disparities-and-climate-change
6 https://www.vera.org/downloads/publications/people-in-jail-and-prison-in-spring-2021.pdf
7 https://www.commonwealthfund.org/sites/default/files/2020-11/PDF_Camhi_Medicaid role health justice system_exhibits.pdf
8 https://www.bls.gov/ooh/protective-service/correctional-officers.htm
9 https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/aclu-report-details-horrors-suffered-orleans-parish-prisoners-wake-hurricane-katrina
10 https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/inmates-abandoned-katrina/
11 https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/18/texas-jails-prisons-winter-storm/
12 https://nypost.com/2021/10/21/photos-inside-rikers-island-expose-hellish-deadly-conditions!
13 https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/rikers-officers-claim-theyre-told-to-work-24-hour-shifts-without-breaks-food-or-water/2962998/
14 https://www.aclu.org/news/criminal-law-reform/as-omicron-surges-people-in-jail-and-detention-are-more-vulnerable-than-ever
15 https://www.npr.org/2022/01/02/1069739357/highly-contagious-omicron-could-spread-quickly-through-crowded-ice-facilities
16 https://www.northcarolinahealthnews.org/2022/01/04/worst-case-scenario-omicron-looms-large-over-nc-prisons/
17 https://covidprisonproject.com/data/national-overview/
18 https://repository.library.northeastern.edu/files/neu:1039/fulltext.pdf
19 https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/2592/text#id2F263F161177498C86EECB2635F3E918
20 https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/IJPH-04-2018-0014/full/html
21 http://www.policeandjailprocedures.com/live/overcrowded-prisons%2c-overcrowded-jails-and-officer-safety-page.html
In our 10th anniversary year, JustLeadershipUSA’s work of educating, elevating, and empowering justice-impacted leaders continues and is growing even stronger!
This is going to be a very special time to look back on the past decade of JLUSA’s important work, the 1,600+ leaders we have helped get to the next level in their work, and even more importantly, we will look ahead to the next 10 years and beyond!
We can’t do this without you. We need your support to help us continue to do this work now and into the future. By making a donation in honor of JLUSA’s 10th anniversary year, you are saying to the amazing leaders in our network who represent the 70+ million Americans who have been directly impacted by the criminal legal system, “I see you, and I support you!”
Please give a one-time $100 gift or set up a recurring $10 monthly donation to celebrate JLUSA’s 10th anniversary year, and together we will build a fair and just U.S. Thank you!
Mail that includes checks only:
JUSTLEADERSHIPUSA, INC
P.O. Box 23681
New York, NY 10087-3681
All other mail:
P.O. Box 1730, New York, NY 10037
347.454.2195
© 2024 JustLeadershipUSA. All Rights Reserved.
JustLeadershipUSA is a non-partisan organization. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed belong solely to the individual author or speaker, and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the organization.
Since 2014, JustLeadershipUSA has maintained our commitment to ensuring systems-impacted voices are at the forefront of the movement for criminal legal reform, empowering directly impacted leaders in over 45 states with the tools, resources, and connections to transform their work.
Your donation will provide crucial support for our leadership training programs, empowering future generations of leaders and propelling the work of JLUSA and our alumni as we continue to advocate and push reform on issues that matter the most in our communities.
In just 10 years, JLUSA and our network of leaders have worked to dismantle decades of harm caused by the criminal legal system.