Holidays Shut Down Prisons, September 2023
In Massachusetts' maximum security prison Souza-Baranowski, holidays shut down services and lockdowns are common. Despair and suicide become part of the holiday season in these bleak gray institutions.
During Labor Day weekend, for example, services slowed or were simply ignored. Progressive Massachusetts's prisons have invested heavily in technology. Inmates in these correction facilities make telephone calls, send and receive emails and have been given Android Tablets to download music, movies, games, and books.
Unfortunately, prison authorities reduce staff during holidays, and all services from laundry to Wi-Fi suffer. Internet is often down, food is poorly prepared, staffing shortages close essential privileges like gymnasium or yard recreation; incarcerated people can't get haircuts, mail, or other basic privileges - like library or education.
Prison authorities routinely rely on staffing shortages as an excuse to take essential privileges from incarcerated people.
Hardship is a part of prison life, for many, despair and ignorance fuel drug addiction and gang culture. Risk of a drug overdose, violence, and suicide increase during grim holidays and are an unfortunate, but avoidable, result of administrative indifference.
Labor Day weekend in Souza-Baranowski proves prison officials will continue their stressful malpractice and mistreatment of incarcerated individuals in their care during a long melancholy holiday season.
These expensive institutions can easily fix problems - but don't. The budget of the Massachusetts Department of Correction, recently signed by Governor Maura Healey, is over 700 Million dollars for 2023. A staggering amount of money to manage a prison population of just 6500 incarcerated people.
The current inmate population census of Souza-Baranowski Correction Center is about 1100 souls. Medium security prisons like MCI-Norfolk currently hold about 1200 or so. Massachusetts DOC has for the past few years been closing facilities and consolidating prisoners in overcrowded conditions in fewer institutions. These artificially overcrowded conditions add to the misery of prison life, and should be examined by Courts and Legislators - but is ignored.
Massachusetts DOC has the smallest prison population in over 40 years. Money is used for labor costs and the operation of the physical plant. Less than %15 percent of the budget actually benefits prisoners.
Prison officials can reduce the cost of streaming services. Allow a free movie download. A Free music download. During the pandemic, inmates could send two free emails daily. The state budget made provisions for free telephone calls. In Souza-Baranowski, and across the Massachusetts prison system, nothing is being done.
Holidays, like Thanksgiving and Christmas, are sad times behind bars. Despair and Suicide live in these isolated guarded institutions. Prison officials have the tools and money to make changes, but instead continue on with business as usual.