Texas Inmates Protest 'Inhumane' Conditions

Inmates in seven Texas state prisons have gone on strike, protesting what they call inhumane living and working conditions. The action began last Monday, with dozens of inmates refusing to leave their cells. Within a day, a general lockdown was imposed, rendering the strike moot. That lockdown is still in effect.

Texas is home to more than 150,000 prisoners. Most of them are in state facilities, where almost all work for no pay. Here & Now’s Robin Young speaks with Erica Gammill, who heads a prisoner advocacy group, to discuss the strike and working conditions in Texas’s prison system.

Guest

• Erica Gammill, director of the Prison Justice League.

Copyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit NPR.