It is not unusual for prisoners to be tortured in jails. But sometimes the torture in jails reaches its extreme. The situation becomes such that the prisoners themselves start revolting or go on strike. Something similar has been happening recently in the ‘Red Onion’ State Jail in Virginia, USA. This infamous ‘Supermax’ jail is famous for harsh treatment of prisoners, in which some are allegedly forced to spend 23 hours each day in ‘solitary confinement’.
Located in Wise County on the western border of Virginia, the ‘Red Onion’ State Prison is made up of two prisons, which are a short distance from each other. The Red Onion was opened in 1998 and houses over 800 inmates, including some of America’s most notorious criminals. Life in any American prison is never easy, but conditions inside the Red Onion have become so bad that prisoners recently went on a hunger strike to let the world know how badly they are being treated.
Being a ‘supermax’ means that Red Onion is described by some as akin to solitary confinement, where inmates are kept in 8-foot by 10-foot cells. Kyle Gibson, a spokesman for the Virginia Department of Corrections, said, “There are currently seven inmates on hunger strike at Red Onion State Prison. These hunger strikes are individual, meaning each inmate has a specific reason for being on hunger strike.”
The hunger strike by prisoners at Red Onion Jail in Virginia, USA has attracted the world’s attention. (Photo: Facebook)
A Facebook town hall organised by former prisoner Kenneth Hunter listed some of the reasons, including abuse by guards, solitary confinement and the use of dogs to intimidate and intimidate. The strikers also sought to draw attention to the untimely death of Jovel Le Gendre, who died in custody on 24 August 2023.
The dire conditions at Red Onion were exposed in an HBO documentary released in 2016, titled Solitary: Inside Red Onion State Prison. Inmates previously alleged they were spending 23 hours a day in their cells.
Tags: Amazing news, Bizarre news, OMG News, Weird news
FIRST PUBLISHED : June 2, 2024, 13:00 IST
