For people living behind bars, receiving mail can be an essential lifeline. Imagine being locked away from your family and friends, and how vital it would be to receive a photo of your child or touch a hand-written letter from your spouse.
Dozens of studies show that being able to correspond with people from the outside can decrease anxiety, stress, and depression among inmates, and can increase their chances of success after release. But some states are making receiving mail almost impossible. Florida is one of them.
Sign now to demand the Florida Department of Corrections lift their inhumane restrictions on incoming mail to prisons!
The new restrictions put in place by the Florida Department of Corrections make it so that all incoming mail is digitized by a privately contracted company, meaning that no inmates can receive original versions of anything. Under these rules, inmates can only view scanned versions on tablets. If they want a copy of the original version, they now will have to pay for it.
These new regulations make it clear: the Florida Department of Corrections is more invested in making profits for contractors than for protecting the lives and well-being of incarcerated people.
People in prison are humans, and deserve basic human rights, including the right to correspond with their friends, family, and community. That is why the Florida DoC must lift the 2020 restrictions on incoming mail to prisons! Sign the petition now if you agree!
