This story was told by a family member of someone incarcerated at CIW (California Institution for Women).
UCI: Well, how have you been coping with it all? Do you find different ways?
Caller: Yeah, just honestly, I just have to just go about everything. I just have to deal with it. It’s hard. But I mean, she’s been in there like my whole life. So, it’s happened like once before where I wasn’t able to see her for like, it was pretty much, yeah this long, more, or less. But it wasn’t like as dramatic as this has been, you know, where I don’t even know if she’s okay.
UCI: Right. Wow. Well, I really appreciate you sharing your experience. I can’t imagine how hard it must be to have no communication, pretty much right, you talk to her.
Caller: Yeah.
UCI: But do you feel as if when you do talk to your mom on the phone, she doesn’t want to tell you everything? Do you think that, they, she’s kind of holding back?
Caller: Well, yeah. Definitely. Yeah. All the time. We can’t really, it’s not like in person, you know? She can’t, I haven’t hugged her. I can’t like, you know, like look at her when she talks. Like, we can’t laugh. We can’t take pictures. We can’t do any of that.
UCI: I’m so sorry. Yeah, I can’t imagine what you’re going through. But I really appreciate you sharing your experience because you know better than me that there’s a lot more people out there who are going through similar things.
Caller: Yeah.
All the unknowns and not being able to communicate, right, with their family members or, you know, the things that prisons are doing. And before we sign off, is there any last kind of thing you want people to know about what it’s like to be a family member with someone incarcerated during the pandemic?
Caller: It’s just very uncertain, all the time, every day. That’s it.
UCI: Yeah, I bet. I mean just kind of hoping you hear from your mom. Right. The next day, hoping you get an email or a phone call. Just the ups and downs. Well, thank you so much for sharing your story. I really appreciate it.
Caller: No problem.
