Issues facing HIV-positive prisoners were the primary focus of the latest AIDS Foundation of Chicago ( AFC ) Black Lives Matter series conference Oct. 6 at the University Center in Chicago.
The Race, Politics and Restorative Justice Black Lives Matter series conference featured plenary remarks by Elissa Johnson ( Southern Poverty Law Center senior staff attorney ) on "HIV Positive and Locked Up: Mass Incarceration and Challenges Facing Prisoners with HIV/AIDS" and a panel presentation on "The Intersection of HIV/HCV, Family, Support and Stigma" moderated by Karen Reitan ( Public Health Institute of Metropolitan Chicago executive director ).
Panelists included Linda Coon ( Families' and Children's AIDS Network project director and attorney at law ), Rev. Doris Green ( Men & Women in Prison Ministries founder and CEO ), Michael Gaines ( Illinois Department of Public Health corrections coordinator for the division of infectious diseases HIV/AIDS section ) and Dr. Chad Zawitz ( Cook County Jail infectious disease specialist ).
Cynthia Tucker ( AFC director of prevention and community partnerships ) and Sanford Gaylord ( regional resource consultant, HIV/AIDS Regional Resource Network Program, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Region V ) welcomed the approximately 100 people in attendance ahead of Johnson's remarks and the panel presentation.
Tucker noted that this was the eight conference they've put together under the Black Lives Matter banner. She said the conference was both timely and relevant due to what's been happening in the news. Tucker explained that the percentages of those with HIV are higher among people who've been incarcerated than those who haven't.
Gaylord, who also served as the emcee for the day, spoke about the conference creating a rippling effect for positive change. He said that more than 35 million people worldwide are living with HIV and over 35 million have died due to AIDS-related complications. Gaylord explained that the percentage of those with HIV who are over 50 years old will only increase over time.
"We are in a mass incarceration crisis in this country," said Johnson. "Over the past 40 years, the mass incarceration rate has continued to rise. Currently, the U.S. remains the leader of incarceration rates around the world. From 1979 to 2009 prisoners in state and federal custody increased by 430 percent. We can't talk about criminal justice reform without talking about race."
Johnson explained that over half of the people in state custody were convicted of non-violent offenses. She noted that 60 percent are people of color with Black men six times and Latino men 2.3 times more likely to be incarcerated than white men. Johnson said that as of 2010 26,000 state and federal prisoners were 65 years or older which is a 63 percent increase from just three years ago.
The war on drugs is the primary reason why the prison population has increased exponentially since 1980, said Johnson. She noted that the number of prisoners convicted of drug offenses was 50,000 people in 1980 and by 1997 the number was 400,000. Johnson explained the disparities between powder versus crack cocaine sentences and how that relates to race as well as mandatory minimums and the tough on crime rhetoric coming from elected officials and law enforcement personnel over the years.
In terms of HIV rates among prisoners, Johnson said of the 2.2 million people in prison 1.5 percent have HIV which is four times the rate of those with HIV in the general population. She noted that the rates of HIV among Black and Latino prisoners is much higher than white prisoners compared to their overall population numbers.
Among the youth population in prison, Johnson noted that the statistics for those with HIV aren't well known because most youth prisoners don't know their status. She explained that in the general population, gay and bisexual youth males accounted for 8 in 10 HIV diagnoses in 2014 and by the end of 2012, 44 percent of youth with HIV didn't know they had it.
Johnson spoke about the increase of youth in secure confinement and the specific vulnerabilities they face including a lack of education about STI's. She said that until recently some states still segregated prisoners based on their HIV status both in youth and adult facilities. Johnson explained that for many prisoners knowledge about STI's is frozen at the time they were incarcerated and that has led to misinformation being spread among prisoners. Access to HIV treatment while incarcerated is spotty or non-existent because of a lack of medical resources in some facilities, said Johnson.
The cost of incarceration is both monetary and psychological due to many factors, said Johnson. These include being a witness to or subject of physical assault, solitary confinement stints, strained family and interpersonal relationships, trauma and exacerbation of mental health concerns and the loss of autonomy. Johnson noted that most prison cells are the size of a standard parking spot and asked attendees to imagine having to live your entire existence in that small space with minimal natural light for many years.
Johnson noted that for prisoners with HIV, the issues are greater both during confinement and post-release in terms of reintegrating back into society due to the added cost and stigma associated with being HIV-positive.
During the panel presentation, Coon spoke about the needs of women in prison including the fact that 82 percent of them have children and/or have survived sexual assault and domestic violence at two to three times the national average. She noted that about 80 percent of women have been charged with non-violent offenses. Coon explained that Families' and Children's AIDS Network is addressing the specific needs of women prisoners in Cook County jail by providing outreach and education surrounding parent's rights and this includes prison staff training.
Green's remarks focused on the work her non-denominational religious organization, Men & Women in Prison Ministries—founded in 1982, is doing including the survey they conducted that shows the highest needs of prisoners after re-entry are expungement, employment, dental work, transportation, case manager access and workforce training.
Gaines pointed out that there are 103 county jails in Illinois and prior to 2010 his office didn't know what county jails were doing surrounding HIV testing and education so they conducted a survey. What they found, Gaines explained, is that only about 15 county jails are doing HIV and other STI testing and education on a regular basis and the education materials are really old. He also mentioned their Summit of Hope re-entry program.
In his remarks, Zawitz said he was humbled by the number of HIV patients in Illinois prisons. He noted that hearing one has HIV while in prison is even harder than for those who aren't in prison. Zawitz explained that privacy issues are one of the primary concerns facing prisoners who are HIV-positive.
The remainder of the day focused on general incarceration issues and what can be done to address those concerns.
