The “Journey to Justice” bus tour stopped in Ann Arbor Friday afternoon as part of a cross-country journey advocating for the end of solitary confinement in United States prisons. Organized by Unlock The Box, the bus tour is part of a larger advocacy campaign featuring film screenings, theater performances and survivor panels. Accompanied by an interactive panel and a life-sized solitary confinement cell, the bus parked outside the Michigan League and included interactive exhibits, a mobile library and victim testimonies.
Solitary confinement is a method of imprisonment where incarcerated individuals are kept in isolated cells for 22-24 hours a day for indefinite periods of time. Individuals can be placed in solitary confinement for various disciplinary offenses including violence against other prisoners, using profanity or disrespecting prison guards. Some individuals may be put in solitary confinement for protection against targeted prison violence if the individual is part of the LGBTQ+ community, a religious minority, or have reported rape or abuse by prison officials.
In an interview with The Michigan Daily, Hakim Crampton, government legislative liaison for Citizens For Prison Reform and member of the bus tour, said in practice, solitary confinement is often overused and has intense negative psychological effects on prisoners…