NJ Spotlight: Support legislation to restrict solitary confinement in NJ prisons

Tricia Idrobo, a volunteer for Unitarian Universalist Faith Action of NJ, a member organization of the New Jersey Campaign for Alternatives to Isolated Confinement, writes for NJ Spotlight:

As we go about our busy lives, it is easy not to give much thought to, or even hear about, what goes on in our country’s prisons, including the widespread use of isolated confinement, also known as solitary confinement. If we don’t know anyone in prison, it doesn’t affect us, right?

Not so quick. Putting aside humanitarian concerns for the moment, we know that many ex-prisoners are eventually released into the community, which means their lives directly and indirectly affect the character of our communities. If nothing else, we are all footing the bill through our taxes. Whether we like it or not, we all have a stake in this issue.