2022-01-14 22:16:06Strike at Rikers 200 detainees at the Robert N Davoren Center on Rikers Island in NYC have been on a hunger strike for 7 days. Conditions at the facility have been deteriorating for years, and the recent Covid-19 surge has brought conditions to a breaking point. An ineffectual "quarantine" means that detainees have no access to recreation and spend much of their time locked in their cells. A major staffing crisis and ongoing sickout among COs (up to 1/3 of the whole staff calls in sick on some days) have led to more service cuts. Some units reported having their commissary visits cut. The heating system in many units is also failing and violence (both between detainees and from COs) has skyrocketed.
In this article, David Campbell, a former political prisoner at Rikers, reflects on how challenging it is to organize collective action at Rikers, and why the current strike is a huge deal.
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