Exposing Solitary Confinement and the Psychological Harms that Follow

Abstract

The United States not only has the highest rate of incarceration in the nation, but it is the one to use solitary confinement excessively. Imagine being placed in a cell that is the size of a bathroom or a closet. In that small cell, all you have is a bed, toilet, and a desk. If you are lucky, you might have a small window that brings light in. The humans that are being placed in this environment lose contact with other humans. No one is acknowledging them in the way humans crave social interaction. Solitary confinement is the practice of being kept alone in a prison cell, away from other prisoners. The only interaction you are receiving is from the correctional officers, and that is when they are just placing shackles on you or being taken outside for that one hour of the day. Two other interactions they face with humans are when they are being taken for a shower or the officers giving the inmates food through the small slot on the door. My goal is to let people know what is happening behind the prison doors on American soil. People hear about prison, and they believe a person should be there for the crime committed. Human beings went through due process to have their freedom taken away from them. Solitary confinement is just an extra punishment on top of that, which is cruel. The public must know what being isolated does to a prisoner. When placed in solitary confinement, one is isolated from the world.