Advocates issue a call to action as part of Prisoner's Justice Day
It was a moving moment outside the Sudbury Jail on Wednesday morning as advocates gathered to commemorate this year's Prisoner's Justice Day.
The day has been held on Aug. 10 every year since 1975, to remember Eddie Nalon, who bled to death in a cell at the Millhaven Penitentiary.
"Prisoners' Justice Day is a very important day for us to commemorate and remember those who have died unnatural deaths while in custody," said Sara Berghammer of the John Howard Society of Sudbury.
"It's important to remember them so that their memory lives on. It's also an opportunity for us to raise awareness about some of the issues people are facing."
Berghammer said post-pandemic, inmates are dealing with soaring rates of substance abuse, mental health challenges and lockdowns.
"If we're speaking specifically about the pandemic, we've had difficulties gaining access to the jail to offer programs and services like our library program or our jail visitation program, which further isolates the people inside," she said.
"It's one of the reasons why we push for alternative programming and that custody be a last resort."
One of the speakers was Cory Roslyn of the Elizabeth Fry Society. She mentioned Delilah Blair, a 30-year-old Indigenous woman who died while in custody in Windsor while waiting for supports.
Roslyn said what happened to Blair was unjust and unacceptable.
"I've been involved in the inquest into Delilah's death over the last five years," she said.
"Since she died, seeing what she went through, what she experienced, I think is pretty typical of how our system works and (how) our system treats people who have mental illness and addictions who are incarcerated."
The day is a way to "bring light to the issues," she said, as well as honour Blair.
"There's always a little bit of fear of the unknowns and I think it's easy for people to look at prisons and incarceration as a way of keeping their community safe and really what we're doing is creating harm to members of our community," Roslyn added.
Caitlin Germond, of the Canadian Mental Health Association, talked about the need to focus on mental health.
"It's an opportunity for us to pause and reflect and take that moment to remember individuals who have died of unnatural or violent deaths while in custody," Germond said.
"Individuals in custody, we see mental health issues are four to seven times more common for those in custody compared to everyone else."
Aurora Stone, Reseau Access Network's peer-engagement coordinator, can speak from both professional and personal experience.
She was incarcerated for a time at a Hamilton-area jail for a crime she said she did not commit.
"It's very important to me," Stone said.
"I didn't have anyone to post bail for me. I had no family that could help me get out of the situation, so I know what it's like to be stuck in this emotional, spiritual and mental torture."
Stone said many people need access to harm-reduction services, considering the hard lives most people living with addiction have had to deal with.
"Maybe the first time you use substances it's a choice, but after the first time it's no longer a choice," she said.
She described life in prison as a place where "you can hear the rats crawling in the ceiling and vents. There are cockroaches as big as your finger."
If you make someone angry, you're sleeping on a concrete slab in a paper dress," Stone said.
"When you go into jail, if you're not already in a treatment program, they're going to let you suffer for sure. So we need harm reduction services."
According to the John Howard Society of Sudbury, 53 prisoners died in federal institutions during the 2020/2021 fiscal year, and 30 per cent of those deaths were deemed unnatural.
About 50 per cent of all deaths in Ontario correctional facilities between 2000 and 2015 were of unnatural causes.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
A 'tragedy that can't be measured': North Bay's forever chemical problem is also the rest of Canada's
For decades, North Bay, Ontario's water supply has harboured chemicals associated with liver and developmental issues, cancer and complications with pregnancy. It's far from the only city with that problem.
opinion How to use your credit card as a powerful wealth-building tool
Irresponsibly using a credit card can land you in financial trouble, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew says when used properly, it can be a powerful wealth-building tool that can help grow your credit profile and create new opportunities.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Here's what 'the hinge' move is, how to do it correctly
When you're picking something up from the floor or bending over to tie your shoe laces, you're performing "the hinge move," according to movement trainers.
Dashcam video shows terrifying near-miss on two-lane northern Ontario highway
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Average hourly wage in Canada now $34.95: StatCan
Average hourly wages among Canadian employees rose to $34.95 on a year-over-year basis in April, a 4.7 per cent increase, according to a Statistics Canada report released Friday morning.
Trump heading to Jersey Shore to rally 'mega crowd' in weekend break from hush money trial
After a long week in court, Donald Trump is heading to the Jersey Shore. And his campaign says he'll be joined by "tens of thousands" of his friends.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.