Voices from Solitary: On Hunger Strike Against Brutal Treatment in Florida Prisons
by Voices from Solitary
Art by Jacob Barrett
Jacob Barrett is an Oregon state prisoner who was transferred to Florida and has been held for years
in "Close Management," or solitary confinement, most recently at
Florida State Prison in Raiford. On February 1, Barrett began a hunger
strike not only against the conditions he himself has endured, but also
against the rampant abuses in Florida's prisons. These abuses have
gained notoriety in recent months due an increase in reporting,
especially by the Miami Herald, on
the high number of prison deaths in the state. These include such
gruesome cases as a man with mental illness who was locked in a scalding
shower until his skin melted off, and another who was gassed to death
while locked in a cell.
What follows are excerpts from a letter sent by Barrett to the Real Cost of Prisons Project, which has long published his writings
and artwork, and a handwritten press release about the hunger strike.
Barrett writes that he believes he has no alternative, and that "I'm not
killing me, they are killing me." A practicing Druid, he cites both the
Quran and the ancient Celtic tradition of the Troscad—a ritual fast held in protest of grievances.
After
two weeks on hunger strike, Jacob Barrett, who is no longer permitted
to write letters, has been transferred to a "crisis unit." His
supporters on the outside are urging people to write to him and to
contact prison officials on his behalf, as outlined here: www.facebook.com/
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
I
don't believe there are any reasonable timely alternatives. My court
cases will be tied up for years, all the while abuses continue and I
can't even make a phone call to my family. We get punished for talking
to other prisoners. It is going to force their hand. And sometimes it is
the right thing to do.
I
am not doing it solely for me, but other prisoners as well. I am also
doing it to show solidarity for families of those who have recently been
shot and murdered by police. I'm tired of hearing these guard call
people "faggot" and beat on people and get away with it.
There
is a verse from the Quran that says "The life of this world is but a
comfort of illusion." (3:185). I don't know. All I know is I find no
comfort in the Florida illusion. I know my action is extreme, however,
I'm not killing me, they are killing me. It's their conduction that is
provoking it.
They
have three choices:(1) correct their wrongs; (2) send me out of
Florida—which would negate the need for a troscad; or (3) let me die and
face media scrutiny, if the media even cares.
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