From the National Religious Campaign Against Torture
For nearly three weeks, prisoners in California’s Pelican Bay State Prison have waged a hunger strike to protest their conditions of confinement including long-term solitary confinement. They have been joined by prisoners from a dozen other California prisons. Many of these prisoners are held in long-term solitary confinement which is a form of torture. So far, state officials have not taken action to address the prisoners’ concerns about abusive treatment.
While the hunger strike is focused on the treatment of prisoners in California, inhumane conditions exist in prisons and jails across the country. In particular, tens of thousands of prisoners are held in prolonged solitary confinement – a situation which can cause long-term physical and psychological damage to prisoners.
Call for an end to the use of prolonged solitary confinement.
Please add your voice to the chorus of people of faith who are calling for a change in the treatment of prisoners. NRCAT has produced a new statement asking federal and state governments to end the use of prolonged solitary confinement. We are distributing this statement to people in all 50 states, with plans to deliver the list of endorsements to governors, state legislators, and prison officials as an appeal to improve the treatment of prisoners in all 50 states.