This letter was written by a person incarcerated at CIW (California Institution for Women).
On December 1st, I was at my job where I work construction and I felt my body completely shut down. I knew the instant I was sick. That night I had a high fever, chills, and body aches but did not report my symptoms to the staff for fear of relocating me to another part of the prison where the living conditions are filthy and not to mention unsanitary.
Well to my surprise, the housing unit where I am living got tested for COVID-19 the very next day. While outside of my cell, I noticed lots of inmates were real sick and just like me, they were scared to speak up because no one wants to move to that filthy place here in the prison.
On December 5th at 8:30 p.m., one of the sergeants came to my cell window and told me to pack my stuff because I had tested positive for the coronavirus. I was moved to a place in the prison where they only allow you to shower on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and when I was able to shower that Monday, the water was freezing cold. No hot water. This part of the prison is called CTC. The rooms there are so cold it’s impossible to get from under your covers.
