The ACLU’s silence on NCDHHS and the Durham jail lockdown speaks volumes
By Monica Chen The ACLU of North Carolina recently refused to condemn, or even comment, on the state health department’s inspection report of the Durham County Jail that showed the NCDHHS couldn’t care less that it’s in an illegal COVID lockdown keeping all inmates in solitary confinement. Instead, the director of the organization, Chantal Stevens, opted to give a canned response on solitary confinement and staffing problems at the jail. And the spokeswoman, Keisha Williams, amazingly said, “We do not have any additional information or comments to provide at this time, as this is not an issue we are actively work on.” That is incredible because the ACLU-NC has been using incarcerated people’s plight for their marketing for years. But when it comes to an immediate problem of hundreds of inmates stuck in solitary confinement and clear signs of corruption at the state level that’s keeping them there, the ACLU cannot be bothered. To sum up what’s been happening at the Durham County Jail, Sheriff Clarence Birkhead continued the COVID lockdown there even after local …