The horrifying reality of prisoner abuse in the United States
is ignored by the free world. I am a prisoner incarcerated in
the Federal Penitentiary in Beaumont, Texas. I have existed
for over 14 years within this microcosm of madness, and as I
write I look at the tall walls and the gun towers positioned
for clear shots to take me and other prisoners out of this
existence.
If the world can hear my voice, please forgive me for the
iniquities that led me to this living nightmare. It is not a
blatant exaggeration when I say that this is hell; it feels
like and has a constant smell of death. I have personally
known men who were murdered, left to suffer and die from
treatable illnesses that prison authorities refused to treat
because to them, prisoners are not even human. What prisoners
are in their minds I do not know, for even animals are
afforded the necessary care to sustain their lives.
I have committed iniquities against society, and I was
sentenced to prison for committing crimes. But never have I
committed any of the criminal wrongs that I see correctional
officials do each and every day.
The media depicts all prisoners as animalistic predators
who are continually scheming, lying, and committing savage
acts of violence. As violence does occur in prison, it is
perpetuated by prison officials who condone the savagery of
prison culture where rape and perversity are commonplace.
American and world citizens need to be aware that America's
prison system monitors itself, and recognize that we have a
crisis because there is no accountability for abuse. There
is a need for reform of the punitive prison policies which
breed lawlessness.
Prisoners in Federal and State systems are being murdered,
beaten, and maimed. They are left to suffer from medical
neglect. They are dying from lack of attention and
consideration because they are prisoners. The Iraqi prison
scandal cannot compare to the scale of dehumanization that
goes on here in the United States.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons tries in every demeaning way
to strip people of their hopes, their self worth, and their
ability to change their lives in order to become productive
members of society upon re-entry into their communities. The
Bureau of Prisons tries to strip away every vestige of
compassion and decency in men.
With the lack of needed rehabilitation programs, education,
and other services, prisoners are left to survive by the only
means available to them to keep from falling into the state of
dementia, which affects all prisoners.
The U.S. prison system has made a taunting ridicule of justice
in its maltreatment and brutal subjugation of prisoners. This
is made possible because a desensitized world has become immune
to the immoral practices of its State and Federal governments.
Prisoner abuse remains deeply entrenched in the United States
because it is ignored. When we remain silent in the face of
injustice, we speak loudly against the principles of justice.
If we do not help end prisoner abuse while knowing that it
occurs, we become a part of the abuse.
We know as human beings that abuse of prisoners does not solve
the problems of society or resolve anything; it compounds an
evil. Prisoner abuse is a negation of human rights and human
dignity. This system of abuse is a platform for unsatisfied
vigilantes fueled by media stereotypes. Despite the
duplicitous truths of the inhumane practice of prisoner abuse,
individuals are blinded by hatred, racism, and revenge that
influence and support the brutality of prisoners with its
barbaric eye-for-an-eye mentality.
Every day that I survive I struggle, and every day that I
struggle I survive life in this shadow of existence. Know that
as a human being, I love. In all my years of incarceration,
Love has sustained me. Love transcends the bounds of race, creed,
and geography and brings the whole free world within its sphere.
It is time that we as a people take a strong stand, and bring
about new policies and reforms by laying down a foundation of
Love—on this foundation reforms will be enacted to help
prisoners and their families meet the challenges that await
them upon their release from prison.
Donnell Joseph
# 01534-112
US Penitentiary Canaan
PO Box 300
Waymart, PA 18472
· from a prisoner's family | Albany, NY
· from a prisoner's family | Albuquerque, NM
· from a prisoner's family | England, UK
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