Wednesday, July 4, 2012

My Grandma Went to Jail

Tonight I went to my cousin's wedding (a beautiful, joyous occasion!) and spent some time talking to my 78-year-old grandmother, Badonna Reingold.  To my utter shock, she mentioned that she went to jail for a night for a sit-in this spring, in her advocacy work for Chicago Mental Health.

I was surprised at her description, which included twelve hours in a holding cell with a dozen women, none allowed to access food, water, or [initially] medication during that time.  My grandmother, a staunch civil rights advocate and previously in all ways a law-abiding person, pled guilty rather than face a jury trial.  Two of my sisters, who are attorneys, counseled against this, but my grandmother felt that she *was* guilty of trespassing in the sense that she had purposely participated in the sit-in.

I don't know much about the situation with mental health funding in Illinois, but I gather that it is in a crisis, leaving many without appropriate care or options.  I hope that the Affordable Care Act will alleviate some of this suffering.

2 comments:

  1. No food or water? Aren't they required by law to give those?

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  2. They probably give food on a specific schedule. If you are arrested right after lunch is served then you wont get any food until dinner time. I think the only drinks that one gets (in NY at least) are with the mealtimes. But dont be too worried, Grandma convinced a nice officer to take her to a private bathroom as well as a drinking fountain when she needed to.

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