This story was told by a person incarcerated at Elmwood Correctional Facility.
UCI: Okay. What has the COVID situation been like at your facility?
Caller: Well it’s – there’s so much people that are in quarantine right now there’s not any room. Like for quarantine. Me personally in our dorm, like, I think maybe two people have got COVID and half the people here are vaccinated and half the people are not.
Because there’s a big whole issue about getting vaccinated that we have here. Because there’s correctional officers they, we asked them, “Are you vaccinated?” and they said “No,” and “Are you going to get vaccinated?,” “No.” So, and our side, we say “Well, okay, if they are not willing to get vaccinated, you know, then why would they ask us to do something they are not willing to do themselves?”
There’s reasons for that. I don’t know the reason but, me personally, I’m not – I’m not vaccinated. But I do everyday, I worry, like, I get tested once a week, you know, because they say it’s getting worse and people are getting sick. And I’m not vaccinated and, you know, that’s one thing that worries me and my family because me getting sick or, you know, even my kids, you know, and what happens with them with the vaccination.
And I read in the paper that there is, you know, they are giving the kids the vaccination and they gave them the wrong shot I mean there is so many negative things that I hear more than positive about the vaccination. You know? Everybody keeps trying to telling us, pushing us to get the vaccination.
But I’m not going to do it. I mean, I don’t know how everybody else feels but that’s my own personal story.
And I’m pretty sure everybody else here would agree but, like, during the pandemic, like, I didn’t really understand what was going on but, you know, I got laid off because of it and two times. And at first didn’t think it was that serious but then I saw, I had family members that died already from the pandemic.
So I know it’s serious but at the same time I know it’s not a good thing that the shot whatever they give you the shot some people get sick. I don’t know there are so many things I hear negatively so I’m not going to get the shot. You know?
So I don’t know, you know, how many people you have spoken to that are here incarcerated and what they tell you about the shot. Even comes out over here in the paper in our county, you know, that there’s a lot of government officials, there’s a lot of prison staff here, they’re not vaccinated so what they’re doing is they’re charging them, I think, 100 dollars or 200 dollars a month for not taking the shot.
So and they expect us to get the shot and we’re not. We’re not going to take it. I don’t know. I don’t really know where to start from my story from now, but there’s too many. I mean I’m pretty sure if you asked more questions then I could have more answers for you.
UCI: Oh yeah, definitely. You mentioned that you guys have spoken to the correctional officers and they, a lot of them haven’t even gotten vaccinated? By any chance have you heard of, has the facility mentioned to you guys about a new vaccine mandate for staff at all California Facilities?
Caller: I – we read in the paper, about them, that they have to get vaccinated and we read that some are even getting laid off or looking for other jobs because they are telling them they have to get the shot but I know that there is some that don’t have the shot. I mean they can’t, they can’t lay off all the people that don’t want to get the shot because then they’re going to have no workers.
And that’s another problem here, because I guess the ones that are left that that did get laid off so they’re understaffed so that gives, that means it’s bad for us because we have less programs. And we don’t have the freedom to do what we need to do because there’s not enough staff to accommodate what’s happening here because of that.
UCI: Yeah, definitely. Have you heard of likeless employee’s coming in at your facility or do you feel that they haven’t started laying people off yet?
Caller: Well they don’t – they don’t speak about it we can see it, you know? We know that they are understaffed and they tell us that they are understaffed. So our program doesn’t run the way it’s supposed to because of the lack of officers that they have here because of the pandemic and their belief in not taking a shot or getting vaccinated.
I mean, me personally, I feel like it doesn’t matter where you go, that you shouldn’t have to be pressured or put in a position to where you are going to lose your job because you don’t want to get a shot. I mean, there are so many bad things we read in the paper about the shot. It’s like why would anybody want to get the shot? When there is so much negative. Basically what we think it’s – it’s like the flu shot.
You know? When you get the flu shot they inject you with the flu so you wont get the flu. I don’t know if it’s true about the COVID-19 or if they inject you with COVID-19 so you won’t get COVID-19, which I don’t know. There is somebody in here that – we have magnets and the magnets stick to their arm, like some type of metal or something that’s in the shot.
So, there’s a lot – a lot of things that are going around with the shot. Like me personally, they don’t know 100 percent, I don’t know 100 percent, you know, kids, the shot, the booster shot and all this other stuff it doesn’t make any sense to me. I mean, people are still getting sick and dying and then now we’re reading about a new strain of the virus coming out that just hit in San Francisco which is close to us. And, you know, what is the shot doing?
The shot is not even helping if people are still getting sick. There’s a new form of the virus that’s coming, I mean, I don’t know – I don’t know what to think about that. And I don’t know how other people feel but that’s me personally. Like what is this shot-what does it benefit.
People are still getting sick if they are getting vaccinated. What’s the point like what’s – I don’t understand. And it’s getting worse, they are saying. So, I don’t know. Are you vaccinated?
UCI: I personally am vaccinated. But I understand that it’s hard to want to get vaccinated, if like all the odds are against it.
Caller: Right. I don’t know, we’re over – like, here we’re – the – there is not enough space to take all the people that are in quarantine. So they are doing a mass release and letting people go early and everything else. Which that’s not going to solve the problem. The problem is that these, the medication or whatever they are giving the people.
To me, I don’t think it’s working, it doesn’t work. And if it does work it only works for a little while. Because if it was true, you wouldn’t need a booster shot six months later. I don’t know – I don’t know – I don’t really know anything about that, but even my kids – my kids, my wife we’re not vaccinated.
And I know everybody that I speak to they’re not vaccinated either. And we’re just doing just fine. As long as we wash our hands and wear our masks – it’s good. I mean, nobody has gotten sick so far.
My wife and kids are okay. But I do have family that they say that passed away from COVID-19, which, you know, I don’t even – there are so many things out there I don’t that I really don’t, thats like a big question.
UCI: Yeah definitely. You also mentioned your family a couple times. How has the COVID situation affected your loved ones?
Caller: Financially? It affects – it affected me and my family a lot. Like, now that I’m in here – it’s like, well my wife she has to take on all the responsibilities of the pandemic.
And, mean, I know the government has been assisting people, and especially with my family but the money or the bills or whatever is running out and it’s not going to be enough. I know I’m not the only family. So, on top of that you still have this – people are still getting sick and here in California it’s going up, the people are getting more sick.
When they were supposed to be under control and all this shot – I mean – to me personally I think that there’s things that are happening that we as a people don’t know about. You know, because there are so many stories and so much information to take in. But I know personally that there’s a lot of people that their families are struggling. You know?
Especially, I was one that got laid off two times because of the pandemic. And it’s not that I can’t keep a job, it’s just that, you know, people are getting sick, they’re closing down, you know, everything is getting closed. And it’s just hard for people.
What are they going to do? Everybody is getting sick and they can’t go to work. How is the economy going to move forward? You know there’s only so many people that can work from home. You know?
And my job, like, I was a maintenance technician. And I worked inside people’s houses and I’d do one on one in people’s apartments. So, like, what is it going to do to me if everybody has to be quarantined and I can’t go into nobody’s house, and nobody, like, where does that leave me?
Like with no income. Unemployment only goes so far. And they only give you so much, but then what happens when the money runs out? It’s going to be crazy. Like, people are going to go crazy.
But we have one minute, I can call you back again tomorrow and we can continue our conversation if you’d like.
UCI: Yeah sure. I won’t be on the line tomorrow. You’re also welcome to call back right now if you still have the time.
Caller: Actually, I have to go because I have to go get my medication.
UCI: Okay, but yeah, you can call back tomorrow and, yeah, somebody else will be able to finish the call with you.
Caller: Okay, did you need my name or anything like that.
UCI: No, you can – we are not allowed to ask for names but when you call just let them know that you are calling back to continue your story.
Caller: All right.
UCI: Okay.
Caller: Thank you.
UCI: Sounds good.
UCI: Thank you so much for calling, have a good night.
Caller: Okay you too bye.
