![]() But if we fight against our circumstances, we’ll be miserable because we’re resisting the Lord and His purposes for us. Such acceptance is possible only if we maintain a biblical perspective and rely on God’s strength in our weakness. 5:3-5.) In these situations, contentment is the ability to accept life as it is-not wanting anything more or different. God allows various kinds of suffering to help us mature in faith and become more like Jesus. Like the apostle Paul, we can learn to be content with whatever God brings or allows in our life. As Christians, we don’t have to live this way. If life is going smoothly, then we feel good, but when it gets hard, our mood drops. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.Too often we let our circumstances determine our attitude. For NPR News, I'm Sarah Betancourt in Boston. JESSE WHITE: Statewide baseline humane standards on this that would cover a maximum allowable temperature, you know, across the state inside of our prison system and then also some basic humane provision to allow for people to not get sick.īETANCOURT: With extreme heat becoming more common and few rules to limit temperatures in cells, prisoners are left to fend for themselves with popsicles, fans and ice water. Jesse White at Prisoners' Legal Services in Massachusetts says temperature regulations need to be put in place. The answer to extreme heat from authorities nationwide seems the same - an extra shower and cooler communal areas during the day. We also know that people behind bars often have higher rates of mental illness and are often on medications for that that make it dangerous for them to experience extreme heat.īETANCOURT: Prison Policy Initiative has been keeping track of whether prisons have air conditioning and what happens when they don't. MIKE WESSLER: Conditions like diabetes and obesity at higher rates that put them at particular risk of heat exhaustion because they can't regulate their body temperatures as well. He says heat exhaustion can be fatal for prisoners. Mike Wessler is with national nonprofit Prison Policy Initiative. Most of the 13,000 prisoners in Massachusetts aren't in air-conditioned cells. ![]() But it does not address the moisture, and there's not air conditioners in each cell.īETANCOURT: Legislators were told the electrical system couldn't support air conditioners in the cellblocks because it's too old. ![]() What that means is that they have fans in the hallways, and then they do have some cold air that blows in from the outside. JAMIE ELDRIDGE: The term that the DOC uses is conditioned air, so it's not air conditioned. On a 95-degree August day, a group of Massachusetts legislators, including Senator Jamie Eldridge, heeded constituent complaints and toured the facility to ask how heat is addressed. The DOC refused to provide anyone to comment, despite repeated requests. A Wellpath email to parents shown to NPR says Bridgewater staff shepherd patients into a cooler gym occasionally during the day. Imagine.īETANCOURT: Parents have been meeting with the department of correction and health provider Wellpath to see what can be done. And he's locked up in this little cage, literally a 6-by-8 cage. HARRY: When I went out today, I purposely shut off my air conditioner, went out for about an hour before this meeting, came back in, and I did that to - just to see how my son was feeling. He didn't want his last name used out of concerns of retaliation. Harry, a parent of a patient there, is worried about his son. At Bridgewater State Hospital, the state's facility for men suffering from mental illness, there are no air conditioners in patient rooms. And there were times where I would actually sit at the trapdoor just to be able to cool off because the fan is just blowing hot air.īETANCOURT: Those fans are expensive, and they're only eight inches wide. He remembers asking to leave a small food slot open to get a cross breeze.ĬARLOS MORALES: Our COs typically were cool enough to let us leave them open, but then the officers in charge would close them. Carlos Morales was released from prison last June and now works in prison advocacy. The issue is urgent in Massachusetts because there are no regulations capping the temperatures in the state's prisons, and people inside are wilting in the heat. SARAH BETANCOURT, BYLINE: It's a problem that isn't exclusive to the South as climate change pushes more hot days on northern states. Sarah Betancourt from member station WGBH tells us that with the exception of some county jails and federal medical units, there are few rules for maximum temperatures in cells. That's because many of these facilities are old and lack air conditioning, exposing prisoners to dangerous temperatures. For correctional facilities that remain open, extreme heat is a major challenge.
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