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njsquarebear

Is Good Food a Human Right for Prisoners?

Recent cases of prisons serving meals with maggots, green bologna, and pet food–quality meat sparks a debate over whether inmates should be eating better.

Is Good Food a Human Right for Prisoners? | TakePart


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sunray's wench

Watermelons grow above ground, rather like a pumpkin.

(psst eunja, Pineapple)

 
DanPal

Off on a tangent here but when I was little I used to think watermelons were imaginary, like unicorns or dragons. I just couldn't fathom that they actually existed and when I saw one in real life for the first time I thought they were papier mache pretend fruit. I was 17.

How do they grow? Are they like pinepples, growing under the ground?.

You're kidding, right? Pineapples under ground! ;)

 
eunja

Off on a tangent here but when I was little I used to think watermelons were imaginary, like unicorns or dragons. I just couldn't fathom that they actually existed and when I saw one in real life for the first time I thought they were papier mache pretend fruit. I was 17.

How do they grow? Are they like pinepples, growing under the ground?

Of course prisoners deserve good food. My view is as long as every part of Maslow's bottom tier is met, then the jails are doing what's required to not be complete and utter reprobates. I'd love to think that they would get the safety/love/belonging/esteem parts wrapped up too for the vast majority of folks inside. As for the self actualisation part, heck, I struggle with that on the OUTSIDE.

It's one of those things where it's robbing Peter to pay Paul if you make things as awful as possible - more anger, bitterness, attitude that doesn't lend itself to rehabilitation. But what do I know, huh? I thought watermelons were the fruit equivalent of fairies for 17 years.

 
DanPal

Ok, thanks :)

 
sunray's wench

Just curious, what kinds of crops do they grow?

From memory: potatoes, corn, turnips, tomatoes, watermelons, aubergines (egg plant). I'm sure there were a couple of other things too. Plus they raise chickens, cattle and pigs.

 
DanPal

Exactly why Hubby wants to keep his field crew job for as long as possible. Also, field crew get to eat some of the crops while they work.

Just curious, what kinds of crops do they grow?

 
sunray's wench

My pp does say the upside to that is that it gets you out into the natural environment. He says it's beautiful. ;-)

Exactly why Hubby wants to keep his field crew job for as long as possible. Also, field crew get to eat some of the crops while they work.

 
Metaxu

I've also been told the food at Parchman is horrible --- often rotten and bug infested. The South is extremely humid and overrun with bugs. Imagine what that does to food handling for 3,000 inmates. The media articles extolling the wholesomeness and virtue of money-saving Parchman farms are propaganda. A lot of that food doesn't even go to the prisoners. The inmates have to work the famrs for no compensation, or they get sent to the hole.

My pp does say the upside to that is that it gets you out into the natural environment. He says it's beautiful. ;-)

 
SummerSkies

Mississippi State Prison also plants and harvests produce for inmate consumption, as well as growing cash crops

One of my penpals is at Parchman. He recently was telling me about the food. He said the produce that they are served from the prison farm is terrible. According to him, there are frequently bugs in the vegetables they are served.
If that's true, I don't think it's fair to do that to prisoners. Prisoners don't need fancy or delicious food, but they do deserve sanitary, fresh, and bug-free food. Forcing someone to eat food that is rotten or has bugs in it is psychological torture even if they won't get sick from it.

 
Earthmother

Mississippi State Prison also plants and harvests produce for inmate consumption, as well as growing cash crops: Inmates harvest fall crops

January 4, 2013 in News, Statewide News, Top Stories

Enough vegetables, including broccoli, mustard and turnip greens, are being harvested now at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman to feed the 12,000-plus offenders in the three main prisons and community work centers of the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC).

Farming is one way the state cuts down on food cost to taxpayers, plus give hundreds of inmates something to do while serving time.

In addition to vegetables, the Mississippi Prison Agricultural Enterprises (MPAE) crop production also includes rice, wheat, soybeans and corn. There’s also a poultry facility with a capacity for 36,000 hens.

 
Earthmother

Angola also grows the majority of its own produce and also provides harvested crops to other institutions. CI Facility Tour - Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola | National Correctional Industries Association

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Angola also grows the majority of its own produce and also provides harvested crops to other institutions. http://www.nationalcia.org/ci-facility-tour-louisiana-state-penitentiar…

 
sunray's wench

Nobody should assume that every prison gives its inmates moldy or maggot-infested food. Many inmates do get reasonable amounts and reasonable quality food to eat, without resorting to the store. TDCJ inmates get what is grown in the fields and harvested by the inmates and the Officers eat the same meals.

 
Secretsquirrel

I googled green bologna and found any article about it was associated with prisons. I thought it might be something American but it really is just mouldy bologna. Maggots if eaten can cause illness. I don't know if there is a case for good food but certainly there must be a case for safe food. I wonder how many prisoners get sick from it? Or if they don't eat it and go hungry instead?

Did watch the you tube clip. The problem is getting people to care about it. I think John Oliver did well presenting a depressing topic and making it funny. I laughed out loud at the maggots found part

One of the guys I write often says what he had to eat for the most recent meal but never mentions mould or maggots. He often says mystery meat. He is in federal

 
Saiar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Pz3syET3DY Well worth a watch

Wow that's bad, I had no idea about most of this

 
Earthmother

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Pz3syET3DY Well worth a watch

 
Saiar

Saiar ~ the aim of prison in the US is generally to remove antisocial individuals from society and to make a profit for the shareholders of the companies that run the prisons. It is not to rehabilitate.

Ye, I get that. Which is why I said: I don't think the American system is necessarily the best way to go about things.
I think it's pretty sad that some people have been in for over 20 years and are still not able to get a second chance to get back into society.
Im all for punishing people who deserve it but at some point it's been enough. I'm pretty sure it would be a lot cheaper for the whole country if there was some succesful rehabilitating being done.

Loads of people are out of prison instead of in prison (which costs loads less money) + they can get a job and pay taxes (which is double extra money).
I really don't understand why the American system isn't being reformed a bit.

 
sunray's wench

No, it is not a human right, and even if it was, America has a history of ignoring human rights if it is not in the financial or security interests of the country.

Food that is fit to consume is what should be expected. It does not have to be "good food" which is a vague term and could apply to gourmet cuisine as well as standard home-cooked meals.

Saiar ~ the aim of prison in the US is generally to remove antisocial individuals from society and to make a profit for the shareholders of the companies that run the prisons. It is not to rehabilitate.

 
Saiar

I think good food should definitely be a human right for prisoners.

The goal of prison is to teach people their behavior was wrong and then bring them back into society as a better person.
I believe that the better we treat them, the more we try and teach them, the more likely it is they won't make the same mistakes twice.
If we want them to come out like a better person, I don't think the American system is necessarily the best way to go about things. Very little rehabilitating being done in my opinion.
A good meal can really make you feel human again, especially if some actual attention was given to getting fresh and healthy products.