Sure leave the most dangerous jobs to the prison-industrial complex. Maybe we
should just grab some middle school kids out of class to fight the fires.
Frank
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Miriam Vieni
Sent: Sunday, October 15, 2017 9:50 AM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Prisoners Fight California's Wildfires for as Little
as $1 an Hour as State Leaders Work to Keep Them Imprisoned
Among those battling the blazes are 3,800 inmates, both men and women, who make
up 13 percent of California's firefighting force. (photo: Flickr)
Prisoners Fight California's Wildfires for as Little as $1 an Hour as State
Leaders Work to Keep Them Imprisoned
By Tanasia Kenney, Atlanta Black Star
14 October 17
California inmates are fighting on the front lines to contain raging wildfires,
all while state leaders secretly worked to keep them imprisoned and fighting
fires for little to no cost.
In recent weeks, parts of the drought-stricken state have ravaged by wildfires,
leaving at least 34 people dead and forcing some 20,000 residents to evacuate.
The flames have charred over 190,000 acres of land and damaged and/or destroyed
around 3,500 structures.
Among those battling the blazes are 3,800 inmates, both men and women, who make
up 13 percent of California's firefighting force and whose cheap labor saves
taxpayers $124 million per year, according to the California Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation. Working on salaries of just $2 a day and an
extra $1 per hour for their time on a fire line, inmates earn next to nothing
for their work, compared to civilian firefighters who have a starting salary of
$40,000 per year.
Some have compared the work to slave labor.
"The pay is ridiculous," La'Sonya Edwards, a female inmate who battles blazes
in Southern California, told The New York Times in August. "There are some days
we are worn down to the core - and this isn't that different from slave
conditions. We need to get paid more for what we do."
Former mayor of Richmond, Calif., and lieutenant governor candidate Gayle
McLaughlin agreed, telling NBC News, "No matter how you may want to dress it
up, if you have people working for nothing or almost nothing, you've got slave
labor, and it is not acceptable."
Using prison labor to battle blazes is nothing new for the Golden State,
however. A recent New York Times report said the state has been employing
inmates to fight fires during fire season since the mid-19th century. In 2014,
the federal court system began talks to shrink California's inmate population
of almost 115,000 men and women.
State leaders hesitated on the plans, however, because inmates (including those
who are eligible for release) serve as a cheap, yet critical source of labor as
firefighters.
Lawyers from the office of then-Attorney General Kamala Harris argued that
releasing too many inmates "at this time would severely impact fire camp
participation - a dangerous outcome while California is in the middle of a
difficult fire season and severe drought." Harris, who now represents
California in the U.S. Senate, told Buzzfeed News she was shocked upon hearing
her attorneys' reasoning.
Her office's argument was one recently echoed by Louisiana Caddo Parish Police
Chief Steve Prator, who was upset over the release of "good,"
nonviolent inmates "you could work - the ones who can pick up trash."
"I don't want state prisoners, [but] they're a necessary evil to keep the doors
open, that we keep a few," Prator said during a news conference, drawing
immediate backlash from critics who said his comments evoked slavery.
As for the fire program, it should be noted that the work is voluntary and not
everyone has an issue with it. For Sandra Welsh, an inmate working at Malibu
Conservation Camp #13 in Southern California, joining the program was a
decision she made for the sake of her two kids.
"This prison trip has taken a lot out of their lives and I wanted them to have
something to hold onto," Welsh told NBC News."My mom's a firefighter. I might
be an inmate firefighter, but I'm a firefighter."
The program also offers other incentives, like being housed in a camp rather
than the confines of a prison cell, and the ability to earn two days off their
sentence for each day they're in the fire camp.
Melissa Logan, an inmate also at the Malibu camp, described the work as
empowering and rewarding because she helps save people's homes. Fellow inmate
LaToya Najar agreed and said fighting fires helps them better themselves both
physically and mentally.
Despite the perks, there's no doubt that what these inmates do is dangerous
work. One of the Malibu camp inmates, Shawna Lynn Jones, died working on a fire
with her crew in February 2016. In her four months as a firefighter, Jones only
made $1,000, her mom told the newspaper.
In May, one male inmate was crushed by a falling tree, while another inmate
died two months later after accidentally cutting his leg and femoral artery on
a chainsaw. Still, many inmates are willing to accept the risks and change
their lives for the better.
"This is not a vocational program," said Bill Sessa, spokesman for the
Department of Corrections. "It is not designed to teach inmates how to be
full-time firefighters. But they learn many life skills that they will say help
them succeed in life when they leave prison . leadership, discipline, teamwork,
responsibility."
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