Formerly incarcerated individuals and their supporters railed against the New York City Council on Tuesday, one day before politicians are set to vote on a bill that would ban solitary confinement in city jails.
Photo by Dean Moses
Formerly incarcerated individuals and their supporters rallied Tuesday against the pressure on the New York City Council to strike down a bill that would ban solitary confinement in city jails.
The Jails Action Coalition and the #HALTsolitary Campaign spoke out at City Hall Park on Dec. 19, demanding that elected officials pass Intro. 549 — the culmination of an over decade-long fight — which would prohibit the Correction Department from isolating inmates in their care.
Opponents of the bill, however, argue that the legislation would restrict the way Correction Department personnel discipline, potentially endangering them. Among the opponents is Mayor Eric Adams, who has raised concerns that the legislation would lead to “uncertainty” among staff patrolling Correction facilities like Rikers Island.
Though the mayor has threatened to veto the bill if it hits his desk, it could be come law anyway through a City Council override vote.
Protesters on Tuesday hope that the legislation becomes law one way or another, and brings about reform in the city’s jails.
“Nobody should be held in long-term isolation, how does this happen,” solitary confinement survivor Victor Pate told the gathering. “Now it is time to change, we must demand change.”
The council is set to make the vote on Dec. 19, with several elected officials already setting their feet in the ground in support of the bill. According to Councilmember Carlina Rivera, 38 lawmakers have signed up as co-sponsors of the bill — the number constituting a veto-proof majority, which makes some feel confident that the legislation will become law.
“That is a majority. But we have to make sure people show up and they speak up and say it is finally time to end…
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply