Right now, one of the biggest problems, the US prison population faces, is the abundant availability of drugs and other substances. Whether it is synthetic or conventional, nothing really matters to the group of people who have serious addiction issues. They will take whatever, driving up bills with their suppliers, not being able to take care of themselves. I spend time on a daily basis talking to those around me who struggle, trying to steer them in the direction of sobriety, but doing this feels like an unmentionable drop in the ocean.
I talk, they agree, they make promises to themselves, to me and to God and a day later, I see them in the same state: “frozen in their movements”, as if in a Pantomime act, throwing up and being genuinely ill of whatever they have taken.
It is a cycle that needs to be broken, but not by peers. Staff needs to intervene. When there are “fall-outs”, the answer to this behaviour is lockdown or when the person fails a urine test, Special Housing confinement will follow. This, however, is not the solution. When released from lockdown or SHU, the same pattern of drug abuse repeats itself.
The people who push contrabands should be held accountable and there should be proper and perhaps mandatory rehabilitation programs led by professionals. Addiction is an illness and should be treated as such.
Sometimes, the unit will be in a greyish cloud of smoke and whatever is coming out of the vents, is first of all very toxic and secondly can be labeled as second hand smoke which is worse,
I do not even want to think about the long-term effects for anybody. People do not even know what they are chewing on, or inhaling or putting in their eyes (!), let alone the people who not have any addiction issues, but are forced to inhale these toxins on a daily basis.
I have Asthma and I struggle with my breathing on a daily basis. I get very nauseated, have severe headaches, just to mention a few effects that I encounter upon inhaling whatever is coming through the AC vents.
Will there be a solution any time soon?
Sherida Nabi
