When a prison closes down, mainstream reportingSometimes, the truth is hidden from public view. This was certainly the case with the planned closure at Susanville’s California Correctional Center (CCC). Articles tend to focus on what’s going on in the minds of local people who have sued the state to stop the prison from closing at the end of June. It seems that some Susanville residents believe that propping up their economy through the caging of human beings — like the two of us, who are incarcerated in CCC — is justifiable.
Many of Susanville’s residents are feeling victimized. The New York TimesAnd The San Francisco Chronicle Tell us. They believe that prison closure is the best thing for prisoners “punishment”By Gov. Gavin Newsom, for their conservative politics. In reality, a prison closing means that the town it is located has a chance to reopen. redemption. Redemption is the. ContraryPunishment. Let us be clear: the people who are being punished are those of us locked inside CCC’s cages. 2015 saw the release of a special report by the Office of the Inspector General. report detailing a “culture of racism” in Susanville’s rural prisons that fosters terrible abuse.
We, the incarcerated citizens of Susanville, filed three petitions in 2021 citing various examples of harm inflicted upon us by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), making the need for CCC’s expedited closure urgent and imperative. Our petitions describe unconscionable abuses of authority; unconstitutional living conditions; deliberate indifference to COVID-19; and Susanville’s violation of our rights, by using us as product and property for the benefit of its own economic growth.
Susanville — often referred to by residents as “the village” — doesn’t get to keep profiting from prisons just because its inhabitants fear the loss of their most recent state-sponsored economy, one of many in the town’s history. We believe that prison closure is the best way to ensure a secure, just, and sustainable future for all.
We are disturbed by the reports of business owners’ hand-wringing, like people who fear Susanville hotels will close if there are no visiting families of incarcerated people to exploit. It’s understandable that free residents would be concerned about potential job loss, but it’s wrong that business special interest groups are funding the push to keep the prison open. If Susanville’s free residents cannot sustain their town without depending on a system that criminalizes and cages human beings, they ought to be rethinking how their economy is organized, and work to make some big changes. We refuse to believe that the only way to “sustain” an economy is to cage and torture human beings.
Meanwhile, despite the lawsuit stalling the prison closure process, CCC is operating as though it’s already shutting down. As we write this, there are no functional programs for rehabilitation. CCC is not accepting new prison guards, also known as cadets. There were at least 30 guards who were transferred out of CCC in March. Many of the very poor conditions can be attributed to inadvertent and manufactured staff shortages. Staff retaliation persists in the form of false write-ups, often resulting in years being added to people’s sentences.
On the surface, “staff shortages” are no great loss — correctional officers operating a racist prison enforce rules inconsistently while thinking they are above the law. But it does mean that we have been left to suffer the conditions of an understaffed, nonoperational prison at its worst, with no planned releases connected to CCC’s closure.
Rather than reading more stories about the woes of the town’s free residents, it’s well past time that Governor Newsom and all Californians hear from us, the imprisoned population of Susanville. The longer this closure is delayed, the more abuse we are experiencing will only increase. That’s why we are asking anyone reading this to support CCC’s expedited closure.
Some think certain prisons could be prioritized for closure over others, and that’s true — but we must recognize there is no “wrong”Prisons must be closed and it is important that they are shut down quickly. Governor Newsom could be smarter in implementing prison closings by developing a plan that will close more prisons and emphasizes the importance community investment. Resources must be allocated to address the lack of equality in today’s economy, especially for Black and formerly incarcerated populations. We must create jobs that will help all of our struggling communities and support those who most need it. That is the definition of public safety.
Closing the CCC, a facility that has been around for six decades, is necessary $503 million in repairsCalifornians will be able to save at least $173million annually in staffing costs by using this method. We can also put some of that money back in Susanville to create much-needed jobs for firefighters and the care of the surrounding environment. But this prison must We all need to move forward.
Susanville is also shut down once more are added. there is much more to do. The California Rehabilitation Center — a dilapidated prison in Norco, Riverside County — would be a strong choice to closeIn tandem with CCC. The Newsom administration’s own nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office calculatedCalifornia’s five adult jails could be closed, which would result in $1.5 billion in annual savings by 2025.
Coalitions like Californians United for a Responsible Budget and many others have called for reductions to the state’s $18.6 billionWe advocated for increased spending on services, infrastructure, and good jobs and a reduction in the corrections budget. We ask for more people to stand with us in our pursuit of justice in Susanville, as well as across the country. We are one step closer to a safer, stronger California by closing the CCC quickly.
