This letter was written by a person incarcerated at Soledad.
Modern Day Slavery.
I am a sanitary technician, or better known as a janitor. In prison, we’re called “porters.” I work eight hours a day, seven days a week. I’m paid once a month, the equivalent of what you might pay for a gallon of gasoline $3.00.
Our California Constitution, under Article one Section six states “Involuntary servitude is prohibited except when being punished for a crime. So my being a criminal, has also made me a slave. I have no union, I have no right to refuse an order, I can’t take a sick day. I often work without proper protecting and if my regular officer isn’t here, I may not get my hours clocked in.
I should mention, I was given a $15,000 restitution fine, so I will have 55 percent of my check taken, that’s why it’s $3.00.
During this global pandemic, I have been faced to work without the luxury of PPE and other safety measures. I’ve been forced to reuse gloves that were used for trash and hazardous waste. My slave masters who get to leave the plantation didn’t use face coverings until late into the pandemic. I have been sick multiple times, but don’t know if I had COVID because they only recently began testing.
I’ve been called a “cry baby” for asking for gloves and also threatened with retaliation for raising concerns to higher ups. Whether CDCR admits it or not, without slaves the plantation won’t run. No officer would close work under the circumstances and environments that we work. We cook, we clean, we move, and we throw trash on this plantation.
Because we’re in prison, we can’t quit a job, we can’t refuse to work or we will be punished with 90 days onto our already lengthy sentence and once we receive those extra days, we’ll still be required to work. That’s the life of a modern day slave. Everyone who has worked so far during this outbreak has contracted COVID.
I decided to humbly refuse to come out and work, willing to accept the punishment. My well being is more important, if that’s a crime then we should reconsider the “R” aspect or CDC since I have to be alive to be rehabilitated. As of today seven inmates have died at this prison (CTF Soledad). Refusing to protect when you know the consequences of a deadly pandemic is nothing short of negligence and murder.
So may things change soon.
