Today, while ignoring pleas and demands from a variety of individuals and organizations throughout the state, Gov. Kay Ivey signed lease agreements for CoreCivic to construct new prisons in Tallassee and near Atmore. Along with the announcement of these contracts, her office released a "Fact Sheet" listing a number of supposed justifications for signing the contracts so urgently and secretly. The last — and perhaps most egregious — of these is her statement that “a mass prison release of incarcerated individuals is more likely if the Alabama Prison Program does not move forward now.” Here, Gov. Ivey is painting an image of our streets overrun with crime, and telling us that the only solution is to move forward with this plan, which has failed to be transparent to the public and even Alabama legislators.This fear-mongering is both untrustworthy and cruel.
The idea that prisons are meant to be cruel, unusual and insufferable runs contrary to the 8th amendment. This amendment protects our right to be free from “cruel and unusual punishment,” which our founders and framers thought fundamental to our country.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) found our prisons to be in violation of the Eighth Amendment, and it shows: only two days ago, two individuals, Robert Earl Council and Ephan Moore were brutally beaten by Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) employees. Robert is at UAB right now, receiving critical care treatment. Years before this attack, the Department of Justice (DOJ) detailed what individuals incarcerated in our prisons experience daily. It is absolutely horrific - an experience that does nothing but traumatize and inflict harm on people. The DOJ report, external investigations, and firsthand accounts detail a hopelessness inside of Alabama prisons. Lack of medical care, mental health care, basic hygiene, failure to protect individuals from rampant violence and general neglect are the “normal” inside Alabama prisons. Some of these issues could be addressed by following the DOJ’s recommendations, but instead, Gov. Ivey is forcing these new prisons upon our state’s rural communities. This is not justice; this is a human rights crisis.
As Alabamians, we cannot be fooled by Gov. Ivey’s fear mongering language. Gov. Ivey is justifying this new construction by selling us the lie that it’s what’s best for Alabama’s safety. She would have us believe that the best thing for our communities right now is to fast-track the construction of prisons which ADOC Commissioner, Jeff Dunn has already admitted won't solve our overcrowding problem, and won’t address the critical issues brought to light by the DOJ report. The truth is that Alabama incarcerates its people at a higher rate than almost any other jurisdiction in the nation, and it’s not because Alabamians are inherently more dangerous or criminal. It’s because of our draconian laws. For example, Alabama’s “three strikes” Habitual Felony Offender Act (HFOA) affects about 6,000 people serving sentences in our prisons, including a disproportionate number of elderly people. These laws, among others, are to blame for the lack of justice and extreme levels of incarceration perpetuated by our prison system.
In the face of the Governor’s blatant attempt at deception, we should be asking ourselves: How does encouraging more incarceration make our communities stronger? How does keeping people in violent, inhumane conditions for inordinate periods of time address any of the problems in our state? Indeed, Gov. Ivey and our elected officials should be working to lessen the number of people incarcerated, bringing families and communities together while spending money to address the root causes of our state's issues.
We should see Gov. Ivey’s actions and statements for what they are: dehumanizing people to advance an agenda which will only help private prison company CoreCivic, and gives no relief to our communities, or for the incarcerated folks facing violence and mistreatment as we speak.
Our call to you, today, is to let Gov. Ivey know that we will not fall for her lies. Gov. Ivey should not make us pay $3 billion dollars to perpetuate human suffering. The residents of Alabama - old and new, present and future - see her actions today, and will continue to find them unacceptable. Call her office at 334-242-7100 and voice your opinion. Call on the representatives from your district to do the same. Stand in solidarity with incarcerated people - who Gov. Ivey would like us to think of as less than human - and amplify their calls for humane treatment. They deserve better than injustice and dehumanization, and our state deserves better than greed and lies.
Jediael Fraser is a senior at Auburn University studying Software Engineering. Jediael is a Board Member for Alabama Students Against Prisons, a founding member of Auburn Students & Community for Change, and President of Emerge Student Leadership Programs at Auburn University.
Hannah Krawczyk is a senior at Auburn University studying public administration. She is a Co-Founder of Alabama Students Against Prisons, a coalition of nearly 300 Alabama students from 28 colleges, universities, and law schools. She is an intern at Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, and member of the Auburn Justice Coalition.
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
