President Donald Trump’s partial government shutdown, which at 25 days has now broken the record for the longest period the government has been shut down, is affecting people in ways they might not have imagined. Some people are worried about losing their food assistance programs come March, while others are worried about losing their housing. Furloughed workers are selling personal belongings, walking dogs for extra income, and might apply to be substitute teachers.
But which population is being affected by Trump’s shutdown and not getting much media attention? Inmates.
As first reported by the New York Times, some inmates at the Metropolitan Correctional Center (M.C.C.) in Manhattan, New York, have begun a hunger strike. Why? For the second week in a row, inmates haven’t been able to receive visitors, including family.
Sarah Baumgartel, a federal public defender who has a client jailed at M.C.C., explained to the Times that the canceled visits were a result of staffing shortages due to the shutdown.
“They have already refused a meal—I believe they refused breakfast and lunch,” Baumgartel told the Times. “My client is in the unit, he’s participating.” (Baumgartel kept her client’s identity private, to avoid possible retribution for said client.)
The M.C.C. holds 800 inmates, including defendants who are awaiting trial. Sadly, a lack of family visits is just the beginning.
At Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center located in Brooklyn, New York, some inmates haven’t been able to see their attorneys. According to an email sent by the Federal Defenders of New York to the chief judges of the federal district courts in Brooklyn and Manhattan, attorney visits at this Brooklyn jail have been canceled on seven days this month alone. This Brooklyn jail contains roughly 1,600 detainees.
“We’re not talking about fancy luxury items here,” David E. Patton, head of the federal defender office, told the Times in a phone interview. “We’re talking about being able to converse with your attorney when you haven’t yet been convicted of a crime. We’re talking about being able to see your children or your spouse or your parents.”
Serene Gregg, president of the local chapter of American Federation of Government Employees which represents M.C.C employees, told the Times that staffing shortages at M.C.C have also led to shortened (if not canceled) recreation time and limited access to doctors and medical care.
Understandably, some inmates have requested medical care during the shutdown. How did that go? According to Gregg, some people were taken out of their cells, then returned back to said cells without receiving care, because “nobody is there to see them.”
“There has been some pushback from inmates in terms of eating the meals provided,” Gregg said. “The tensions in the building are very, very high.”
Across the board, inmates face high levels of sexual harassment and abuse, high rates of physical violence (including from guards), and job discrimination after their release. These things are just the tip of the iceberg. And now, thanks to Trump’s shutdown, some inmates aren’t receiving the most minimal care.
“This is the absolute lowest baseline we should expect of a government when it detains people and assumes responsibility for their well-being,” Patton told the Times. He’s right—it’s the absolute lowest expectation, and our government isn’t managing even that.