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NEWS & LETTERS, May 2002
Cuts hurt prisonersJoliet, Ill.—All college academic and vocational classes throughout the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) were abruptly terminated as of Dec. 21. The only classes available are mandated GED curriculums. Prisoners were paying for these college classes once returning to society. College classes greatly enable prisoners to find employment and not return to prison. For several months, there was a hiring freeze for most prison assignments. There were also no pay raises for prisoners for several months. At Hill Prison, pool and ping pong tables, which were purchased by the residents benefit fund (10% added to all prisoners’ commissary purchases), are being taken out of the prison. Hill Prison has had very
few real security threats with very few officers being assaulted. Although Hill
is a medium security institution, the prison is run like a maximum security one.
Fences are being built around each cell house. Prisoners’ movements have been
drastically reduced. And for what? Fear? The Illinois prison guards’ union is only concerned with saving its membership. In reality, positions like food supervisor, just like counselors and superintendents, are unnecessary, expensive positions that can be fulfilled by security. There is plenty of money for the IDOC staff, as a whole, just none for prisoners’ needs. The bottom line is that prisoners are receiving the worst end of the stick during a time when increasing numbers of news stories are showing crooked cops forcing confessions to incarcerate while DNA tests exonerate prisoners from years of false confinement. The prison union doesn’t know just how good they have it —Tiberius Mays |
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