Photos posted on Instagram from inside the DeKalb County Jail in Georgia have sparked protests over the conditions for the prisoners held there.
Malaya Abdullah-Tucker, the mother of an inmate, shared photos on Instagram that show the prisoners writing frantic messages on containers describing the conditions at the jail.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv5GsEBjoEg/?utm_source=ig_embed
The desperate messages from the inmates say things such as “Dekalb jail is mistreating us,” “We sleep …breathe mold,” and “Please help we dying need food!!!!”.
On her Instagram page, Abdullah-Tucker wrote,
“Inmates in Dekalb County Jail is actually DYING and being subjected to unhealthy conditions; breathing and sleeping with mold, having skin break outs, being assaulted by correctional officers in areas of the jail where there are no cameras etc. STAND FOR THESE YOUNG MEN! They are caged away with no voice! No matter what they are incarcerated for, they do not deserve to live in such treacherous conditions!”
Abdullah-Tucker’s posts led to protests outside the jail that turned violent and led to the arrests of four demonstrators. After the protests, the DeKalb County Sheriff admitted that there is a mold issue in the jail but flatly denied that any human rights abuses occur inside the facility.
Sheriff Jeffrey Mann said, “We would really like them to learn the facts about how we fulfill our constitutional mandate to serve the public safety needs of this community and those of the more than 1,800 individuals currently in our custody.”
A more recent violent protest erupted outside the jail as well in mid-May and resulted in more arrests.
Keep an eye on this important story to see how it plays out.
