The use of solitary confinement in prisons has long been used as punishment, disproportionately applied to people of color and those with mental health diagnoses as methods to address symptomatic behavioral episodes. These segregationist practices have been found to cause long term psychological and physical damages to the individual. These practices are sometimes enacted without a formal policy & procedure on what markers would result in confinement. Many times the confinement is put in place in excess of two weeks. LGBTQ+ persons, while not specifically mentioned in this study, are also targeted for isolation. While the intention might be said to be for the individual’s safety, it is, of course, puntative. That might be expected, given that this is a carceral environment, however, is the punishment for actual behavior, or is it for being non-heteronormative?

In UNLAWFUL DISORDER, Bowie displays aggressive behavior while imprisoned in order to stave off the sexual advances of his ‘cellie’. The result is that Bowie is then placed in ‘the hole’: solitary confinement - without clothing, being served one meal a day, and being allowed of one hour ‘exercise’ time/time for hygiene.

The United States Senate, spearheaded by Senator Julia Salazar, has passed the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement Act (HALT). This legislation (S.2836) limits the use of segregated confinement for all incarcerated persons to 15 days, implements alternative rehabilitative measures, including the creation of Residential Rehabilitation Units (RRU), expands the definition of segregated confinement, and eliminates the use of segregated confinement for vulnerable incarcerated populations.

Many prisons continue to practice the use of solitary confinement longer than 15 days.