On Wednesday March 13 Yusuf Faqiri will be in Halifax to talk about the death of his brother Soleiman, who lived with schizophrenia and was killed by guards while in solitary confinement in Ontario. Yusuf will speak about deaths in custody, the journey to justice for his brother, and the treatment of mental illness in Canada. Schulich School of Law, room 104, 7 PM.
At least eleven men and women have died prematurely in Nova Scotia prisons and jails since July 2011. We talk with prison activist Martha Paynter to understand these shocking numbers.
News release: The excellent Women’s Wellness Within celebrates its 2nd anniversary as a registered non-profit organization with Top Ten Lists and Immediate Actions.
Raymond Sheppard on the urgent need to fix systemic anti-Black racist bias in the courts and in policing.
Today, Wednesday Jan. 30, at 7pm in the Student Union Building at Dalhousie University, Room 303, we are holding a Justice for Soli event in concert with the vigil in Toronto. Join Ashley Smith’s family on Bell Let’s Talk Day to talk about deaths in custody of people with mental illness in Canada.
News release: On January 30, 2019, in light of Bell Canada’s “Let’s Talk” campaign, Women’s Wellness Within would like to take the opportunity to join our friends with the Jail Accountability and Information Line (JAIL) in highlighting the importance of mental health for prisoners in Canada. Limiting communication for incarcerated Canadians exacerbates the already pronounced effects of confinement on prisoners’ mental health. We are asking our decision-makers to prioritize the mental health of all Canadians.
The wonderful folks at Books Beyond Bars need all your help to deal with a sudden need to find a new place to store all their books!
Rebecca Hussman went to a talk by registered nurse and activist Martha Paynter about the shocking lack of health care for women in Nova Scotia prisons. Paynter dedicated her talk to two women who died while in Truro’s Nova Institution for Women in 2015: Veronica Park and Camille Strickland-Murphy. “… this is what happens when we inadequately care for people inside,” Paynter said.
NDP Justice critic Claudia Chender on solitary confinement and other prison-related issues. “Our provincial jails are a black box. We have very little idea of what goes on behind those walls at all. It’s time for some transparency in our correctional system. It’s time for an independent review of the practice of solitary confinement. It’s time for the government to start listening.”
The news of the death of Joshua Evans, a young man who lived with developmental disabilities and committed suicide while on remand in the Burnside Jail, is devastating. The CBC reports that Nova Scotia Justice Minister Mark Furey now wants an investigation into Joshua’s death, including “whether he should have been there in the first place.” That’s quite the statement, given that In Nova Scotia we lock up people like Joshua all the time. Often in prison, where health care and mental health care needs are not sufficiently addressed. Even more frequently in prison-like institutions. And the province is just fine with that.