UPDATE:
We pushed through another grueling day. Conditions for folks inside remain dire. We’re angry, & increasingly concerned about the impact that poor sanitation & lack of water will have on the spread of COVID-19 in overcrowded jails. These are some of the stories we heard:
Conversation
Replying to
1) Harris: "We’re getting portions for kids. A PB&J and those Johnny sacks don't fill an adult. We haven't had laundry in 8 days. Water’s back but we still can't shower. Got a couple of bottles of water but that ain’t enough. If I wash my hands, I don’t have enough to drink.”
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“We still got no cleaning supplies to disinfect the toilets. It’s filthy. It’s like we're not even human. It’s so depressing. It breaks a person’s psyche. I’ve been here for 2.5 years. My court has been reset 22 times. TWENTY TWO TIMES! I am just sitting here...
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...I am just sitting. It’s so cold. No extra blankets. There’s no movement. I caught Covid in May and I was in the hospital for 10 days. I thought I was going to die for sure. Then I had a heart attack. My heart & lungs are damaged now. I am afraid I am gonna catch Covid again.”
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“There are only 2 phones for 28 of us. Fights break out over phones because it’s really hard to call our loved ones. We've had no visitation for so long. I haven’t talked to my mom in 2 years! There’s always fighting over the phones. It’s not right. We need a voice in here.”
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“There’s a man in here I need to tell you about. He’s in a wheelchair. He has no legs. He hasn’t showered in over 3 weeks. The shower is not disabled access. He can’t even get into the shower. No handles, nothin. The jailers just don’t care about him. He needs help.”
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2) Bowie (Bi-state jail) : “We have water but we don’t have any toilet paper. No toilet paper, no soap and no sanitary pads. We keep asking but they ignore us. I just don’t want to be treated like an animal. I don’t want to feel like an animal.”
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“They’re telling us they can’t give us toilet paper because they can’t get to the laundry building. But all they have to do is walk through the snow. If they weren’t going to do it they should have looked at the weather before it happened and pulled tissue out or something.”
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Content Warning: Pregnancy, loss. “My daughter is 5 months pregnant in that jail. I can’t even find her in the system. Like she doesn’t show up in the jail system so I can’t put any money in her books for her to call me. She has to wait for someone else to give her their call...
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...I don’t know who to turn to. She was pregnant with twins last year but she lost them. She’s high risk now. She doesn’t have any toilet paper or anything to stay clean in there.”
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3) Victoria: “I am not even supposed to be in jail. My parole hold ended almost a month ago. But they haven’t let me out. Then I caught Covid. We haven’t had water for 3 days. I haven’t took a shower. We have to put the used toilet paper in a bag. It won’t flush.”
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For context about Victoria county jail’s refusal to test for COVID, please see our thread from Feb 12th:
Quote Tweet
(1/3) What’s worse than being packed in a jail cell where it’s impossible to distance and you have very little agency to protect yourself from COVID-19?
Being charged for a COVID-19 test.
We’re hearing from half a dozen sick people in Victoria county jail.
Show this thread
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4) Bastrop: “I’ve had Covid symptoms for a week now. My whole body hurts but medical keeps refusing me Ibuprofen. I asked for a Covid test. They won’t give it to me. I am still in the same tank with 7 other men even though I got symptoms. I am 60 and I have respiratory issues...
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...I am cold. We don’t have any extra blankets. It’s filthy and stinky in here. We didn’t get any water for three days. They gave us cardboard to cover up the toilets. And we put the used toilet paper in a plastic bag.”
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5) Montgomery: “They have to take buckets of water to flush the toilets. He said he took a shower with a water hose. It was cold water. It's cold in there & they gave them all a second blanket.
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He said he didn’t know why he was sweating because he just had that cold shower. He has been congested sounding and was coughing. I hope he is not getting sick.”
6) Smith: "I haven't heard from my husband since Monday. I am worried sick."
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7) Bexar: “They're not given any additional blankets or coats. They have yet to be provided any clean water for drinking. The toilets are not able to be flushed. Food is still scarce and not at all what any normal person would consider a full or rounded meal.”
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Research warns about the presence of COVID-19 shed in fecal matter. It can not be overstated how dangerous the hygiene/toilet crisis is for people trapped in jails where the virus is already spreading. We’re concerned about a possible COVID spike in the coming weeks.
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With the help of our amazing volunteers, we've disbursed $17,931 in direct aid this week to people in 8 jails. Yesterday we passed our $5,000 distribution goal & finished at $6,195. We passed our goal again today having distributed $6,236 with volunteers still making deposits.
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