It was like the prison had given the okay for them to rape us

[SnoopyLights]

I saw this on Instagram last night and I seriously haven't been able to stop thinking about these poor women since I read it.

Women incarcerated in California's largest women's prison are describing the conditions as "a nightmare's worst nightmare" after the introduction of new pregnancy resources in the Central California Woman's Facility (CCWF) medical clinics. The new resources are a tacit admission by officials that woman should expect to be raped when housed in prison with men, where all sex is considered non-consensual by default within the system.

New posters recently appeared in medical rooms outlining the options available to "pregnant people" in prison, including prenatal care, abortion, and adoption. The poster also declares that woman have the right to "contraceptive counselling and your choice of birth control methods by a licensed healthcare provider within 60 - 180 days prior to scheduled release date." However the only methods available to incarcerated women to prevent pregnancy are condoms, which appeared shortly after the men, and Plan-B emergency contraceptives.

Prior to the passage of SB 132, pregnancies among incarcerated women were vanishingly rare in California women's prisons. Women who entered the justice system already pregnant are typically held in county jail or separate medical facilities until they give birth.

Women's prisons across the state appear to be making final preparations such as these for a massive wave of transfers after nearly 300 requests were initiated following SB 132 going into effect in January of this year. So far, only about 20 of the transfers have been processed (and exactly zero transfer requests have been denied) - leaving hundreds of men, many of whom are sex offenders, awaiting entry into the women's estate.

Speaking to Amie Ichikawa, founder of Woman II Woman and advocate for incarcerated women, one woman currently housed in CCWF said it was like the prison had "given the okay for them to rape us, cause you have a plan to take care of the aftermath."

At a recent CCWF Captain's meeting, one woman read a statement in which she pleaded for help and accused CO's of ignoring their previous concerns of being housed with a serial rapist.

"How do we feel safe in our community? When we reach out for help we get nothing...There has been an assault on a woman and we still are silenced."

"We have had our hope taken away once again. Does anyone care that we are being forced to house with 6'2, 250+ lbs men with penises that are here for brutally raping women? We have been warned by the officials in this prison, more are coming with worse charges."

"Where is the safety concern for us? If we say we are in fear, we are the ones locked up."

www.womensliberationfront.org/california-sb-132-a-disaster-for-incarcerated-women

You forget, Redapplewreath, that in the New Utopia women can make women pregnant with their womanly penises.

Remember when they said male prisoners wouldn’t fake being trans women just to go to women’s prisons?

The huge jump in the number of trans women (male) prisoners now requesting to be moved to women’s prisons is pure coincidence. It’s not at all because they want access to women who are locked in with them.

I don’t care what a woman has done. She doesn’t deserve to be locked in a cell with a man.

This is one of the most misogynistic things I've ever seen. It's just completely unforgivable and indefensible.

If anyone wants to argue 'but who would go through hormones/surgery just to do this' then (1) rapists can and will go to great lengths to get access to victims and (2) they literally just have to say the women's estate is their preference. Obviously if someone has been a trans woman for half their life and has made changes, there should be a discussion about where they should be kept, but men who suddenly discover they're women at intake? No.

How do we fight this?

How do we fight this?

I have no idea, I was speaking to my friend about this today and she was totally in the dark, makes me realise how much I know because of MN.

The information has to get to people.

@Whatwouldscullydo

This breaks my heart it realky does. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy. Rape becoming an acceptable punishment fir a crime , so much fir being being civilised country hey.

Why can't males just be told no. Like ever.

Not only that, if a man commits rape and is caught (not that getting caught happens very often), he only has to say "I am a woman" and his crime is rewarded with captive victims.

Is this constitutional? It's really hard to change the US Constitution so if there is something in there it could be a bombshell.

Mark my words, there will be moves to have the resulting babies sold adopted to rich couples, as the conservative right wing religious lobby will outlaw abortions.

The Handmaid's Tale come true.

@EishetChayil

Mark my words, there will be moves to have the resulting babies sold adopted to rich couples, as the conservative right wing religious lobby will outlaw abortions.

The Handmaid's Tale come true.

Shuddering at the thought of the resulting quality of life of those babies who will have been basted and grown in trauma and stress chemistry from the moment of conception, and will have to live with the knowledge of being a child born of rape in highly distressing circumstances. Knowing the current total lack of competent resources for children with significant trauma in the adoptive system, the breakdowns in placement, the issues finding foster placements and serial foster placements and funding and providing high level therapeutic residential placements for children too traumatised and disturbed to be in family homes and then finding adult placements for them -

just put the taxes up now.

Shuddering at the thought of the resulting quality of life of those babies who will have been basted and grown in trauma and stress chemistry from the moment of conception, and will have to live with the knowledge of being a child born of rape in highly distressing circumstances. Knowing the current total lack of competent resources for children with significant trauma in the adoptive system, the breakdowns in placement, the issues finding foster placements and serial foster placements and funding and providing high level therapeutic residential placements for children too traumatised and disturbed to be in family homes and then finding adult placements for them

And those are just the lucky ones who aren't born mid prison drug problem.

What's going to happen.to those babies adoptive parents usually want healthy babies

I don’t care what a woman has done. She doesn’t deserve to be locked in a cell with a man.

Why has it become a required right for a male to choose to have access to females in the prison system, and yet not a required right for females to choose to refuse to be accessible to males in the prison system?

God this is just awful! This is torture and inhuman treatment. How can these legislators look themselves in the mirror when women prisoners are being forced to share cells with male sex offenders?

just checking to see if any of the visitors who like to come and tell us how to feminist have joined this thread

where are you, you disingenuous bastards?

defend this

I can't believe I just read this. F'ing hell, what male will not self-ID as a woman in order to serve their term under less violent conditions!?!

They won't be able to maintain this system, it will all blow up in their face. But until this is reversed, many women will suffer. This is all so predictable, and yet, they move ahead with it. Because women don't matter, and if you are a woman in a prison or in a mental facility you have no voice at all. You could as well not exist.

@EishetChayil

Mark my words, there will be moves to have the resulting babies sold adopted to rich couples, as the conservative right wing religious lobby will outlaw abortions.

The Handmaid's Tale come true.

I'm sure I read that in some States, a rapist can fight for parental access to a child they have fathered through rape.

I hope that's not still the case. And I would hope that the rapists family wouldn't be considered for access or as potential adopters either.

If anyone wants to argue 'but who would go through hormones/surgery just to do this' then (1) rapists can and will go to great lengths to get access to victims and (2) they literally just have to say the women's estate is their preference.

Indeed. Paedophile men will seek out and marry women to have access to their children; men will train for the priesthood to have access to children; men will volunteer for Scouts to have access to children.

Some men will do a lot to have power over the vulnerable.

This is so distressing. I read it in a glinner email earlier this week and haven't been able to stop thinking about it.

I've been trying to work out what I can do to help. I've not got very many ideas but Keep Prisons Single Sex has some suggestions for where to write and what to say, and also have t-shirts for sale. I've bought one to wear and hopefully it will start some conversations.

www.keep-prisons-single-sex.org.uk/males-really-held-in-womens-prisons

@HighFemme

Saying this as someone who vehemently disagrees with putting transwomen in female prisons: to be taken seriously on this issue, everyone needs to exercise a bit more critical media literacy and stop taking social media stories at face value. I mean come on, does everyone here really think the reason these imprisoned women are offered prenatal services and advice is because of transwomen now? Like no pregnant woman has ever been sent to prison??? Also, note the advice about contraception is mentioned in relation to their release date. I.e it appears contraceptive counselling is being offered as part of a prison's resettlement services, as unwanted pregnancies may compound the issues in a woman's life that have led to her offending.

It's great to see so many people now apparently care about incarcerated women's wellbeing and people are right to be angry at how unjust this is. But please, stop and think before sharing these outrage pieces on social media. They're misleading and it destroys any credibility to the argument.

They didn't previously need condom machines in women's prisons did they?

Aside from the obvious rape risk, exactly why do you think males and females have historically been housed separately?

How do you now see that those risks have changed?

#whatwouldelizabethfrysay

[quote beastlyslumber]This is so distressing. I read it in a glinner email earlier this week and haven't been able to stop thinking about it.

I've been trying to work out what I can do to help. I've not got very many ideas but Keep Prisons Single Sex has some suggestions for where to write and what to say, and also have t-shirts for sale. I've bought one to wear and hopefully it will start some conversations.

www.keep-prisons-single-sex.org.uk/males-really-held-in-womens-prisons[/quote]
It’s heartbreaking isn’t it?

I’ve written to my MP and I am going to go and talk to him about it later this year. Whether it will have any effect or not I don’t know but I had to do something.

If everyone who feels this way does just one thing, talks to one person, writes one letter maybe we can start to change things but by bit?

bit

Eighth amendment "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted."

You'd think locking vulnerable women up with rapists would be considered a cruel and unusual punishment.

Also women prison officers will be in danger, even having to perform searches on these men will be a violation of their rights imo.

I asked a friend who works with the MOJ if a male officer could identify as a woman for the duration of the search and apparently thats not allowed.
It just get curiouser and couriouser. As someone said above, its like powerful men enjoy the thought of women being violated sexually

Gobsmacking. Criminal. "Here, we're gonna make a situation where you get raped, but we're so nice we'll provide condoms." Just ... whaaat ...

Was it this bad in 700 AD?

I can’t understand why there isn’t more of a public outcry about it. It beggars belief.

I think it’s because people deep down want and enjoy the thought of “bad women” being sexually punished and abused.

MondayYoghurt

That is one of the saddest things I have ever read.

We all need to write to our MP’s.

Probably no outcry for a variety of reasons. In US prisoners are considered low priority and female prisoners are even less respected. Moreover, there will be a high number of African American female prisoners , so there is also the racism component .

If everyone who feels this way does just one thing, talks to one person, writes one letter maybe we can start to change things bit by bit?

I think this is what we have to do.

It also occurs to me that, at least in Scotland, women speaking out against self-ID etc are going to be subject to hate speech laws and custodial sentences can be imposed if found guilty. But now a prison sentence comes with an implicit threat of rape and sexual abuse by males in prison. Who will have the courage to speak if women's speech is punished by rape?