The South has made tremendous strides in integration, except when it comes to South Carolina and Alabama. Both states segregate HIV+ inmates, but Jon Ozmit, director of South Carolina’s Department of Corrections exceeded all expectations for ignorance with his comments after learning that the Department of Justice was considering suing his department. An August 14, 2010 article from Salon states that Ozmit called the potential legal action “shameless,” and accused President Barak Obama and the Justice Department of “promoting the transmission of AIDS,” and asserting that the JD “wants you to get AIDS and die.”
The Department of Justice notified SCDOC that legal action would be initiated unless HIV+ inmates were placed within the general population, given the opportunity to be employed in inmate kitchen jobs, and be granted work release, as is the case with HIV- prisoners. Ozmit claims that doing so would “impose a death sentence” on other inmates, despite scientific evidence to the contrary, and the fact that 48 American states do not segregate HIV+ prisoners.
South Carolina does not allow HIV+ inmates to participate in work release programs which allow inmates to earn early release credit. South Carolina also excludes HIV+ inmates with short sentences from participating in a rehabilitation program geared to those with minimal sentences.
Ozmit justifies his actions because, as Megan McLemore of Human Rights Watch reported for Salon, they are “convicts” and are already stigmatized outside of prison. Education for all inmates on HIV prevention is a far more intelligent, and much more humane way of addressing HIV in prison.
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