Signs of a nationwide prison strike have shown up in Indiana.
According to the Marshall Project, the purpose of the strike, which began on August 21, is to bring attention to what some inmates and activists are calling “inhumane conditions” and “slave labor” in U.S. correctional facilities.
In addition, the inmates are striking for better pay for the jobs they do inside the prison, more rehabilitation opportunities, as well as restoring the voting rights of nearly six million ex-offenders.
Strike tactics have included inmates not reporting to work, going on hunger strikes and not spend money in the prison commissary.
Officials at the Indiana Department of Corrections say seven inmates at the Wabash Correctional Facility are participating in a hunger strike, but there have been no other reported signs of the strike showing up in Indiana prisons.
DOC officials say they have protocols in place in the event things escalate and they are prepared to implement them if necessary.
The strike is expected to go until September 9.
