This is an archive of the former website of the Maoist Internationalist Movement, which was run by the now defunct Maoist Internationalist Party - Amerika. The MIM now consists of many independent cells, many of which have their own indendendent organs both online and off. MIM(Prisons) serves these documents as a service to and reference for the anti-imperialist movement worldwide.
Inside AD-SEG

This is coming to you from someone who is living this nightmare every single day. You see, being in Salinas Valley State Prison alone is a nightmare, but when you talk about administrative segregation that's another chapter and believe me, I know. I've been back here for nine months now and the things I've seen could last the average person a lifetime. One thing I've seen is how the "administration" will house a snitch right next to you to try to get information from you. These snitches want to go to a yard that they call "sensitive needs" and they will do anything to get there because they can't be in general population and the "administration" knows this. The reason I know this is because I had one of those placed by me. You really can't talk to too many people because you don't know who is who.

Now we get to the dehumanizing aspect of this place, it's how you go out to this "cage" they call a yard and it is literally a cage with no toilet. It's about 20' by 15' but that's just estimating. All you can do is walk back and forth like an animal and if that's not bad enough, they make you go out in your underwear even when it's raining, although they will give you this thin denim jacket. The only time you get to put on a jumpsuit is when you're leaving the unit to go to a medical visit or court. But a lot of the time I've also seen them march people to medical in nothing but underwear and karate shoes.

One thing that is really very bad is that the officers back here in AD-SEG don't know how to communicate with the convicts. They are very disrespectful and very unprofessional. That's about 90% of the officers that work back here. But what can we do when it's our word against theirs? Nine times out of ten we're going to lose. Since I've been back here, I've seen retaliation like you wouldn't believe. I'm talking about things you wouldn't think someone who is supposed to uphold the law would do. I've heard so many times that this prison is being investigated but have yet to see them change their ways and actions.

Another subject that is very serious is the "rations" they give us. If you see how they feed us in AD-SEG, you wouldn't believe it. We barely get enough and they say it's a balanced diet, but that's hard to believe. You're still hungry after meals. Now when I was in general population, we got more to eat than in AD-SEG. Just because we're in jail doesn't mean we should be treated like animals. We're paying our debt to society and we're paying in a big way.

-- A California Prisoner, February 2004