Hunger Strike at Allred Ad-Seg to Fight Inhumane Conditions
22 January 2018 - There is a hunger strike going on right now at the Allred Ad-Seg Unit, which is located in Iowa Park, Texas. A lot of prisoners are on hunger strike in protest of the cruel and inhumane conditions which have been allowed to be visited upon the prisoners in the Ad-Seg Unit. The key issues are:
- Lack of opportunities to go to outside recreation.
- Cold food being served every meal at the Ad-Seg/High Security Unit.
There are a lot of similar problems here at Eastham Ad-Seg and some of the common denominators which allow these problems to continue are:
- Serious Shortages of Staff all over TDCJ
- Lack of funds to make repairs on anything
- Deliberate Indifference and Abuse by uncaring Staff at Allred!
One issue that I’d like to bring to your attention is that prisoners who are housed in Ad-Seg (all over Ad-Seg, but especially at the Allred Unit) are more vulnerable to abuse by TDCJ prison employees because they are more isolated from the general public, the media and their FAMILIES!! Hunger Striking is the last ditch effort to have their grievances heard. This is a cry for HELP! We cannot ignore them.
MIM(Prisons) adds: The Texas grievance process is abysmal, and in most (if not all) facilities, the instructions on how to use the grievance process are not even made available to prisoners. We saw no other choice but to compile this material and distribute it ourselves. So when this correspondent says “hunger striking is the last ditch effort,” we can attest to the lack of progress using official channels. Eventually it gets to a point where humyns can’t take the abuse and neglect anymore, and the prison admin is only frustrating their attempts to go the “proper” route. Hunger striking is one of the only forms of protest left. We are trying to work toward a society where people don’t need to starve themselves to be allowed outdoors, and asserting ourselves, such as in this hunger strike, is one step toward that new society.
