In December 2020, RFK Human Rights submitted a testimony to the NYC Council Committee on Criminal Justice, commending the Council for its intention to end solitary confinement, yet highlighting how certain measures fell short.

In most circumstances, solitary confinement constitutes cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, and rises to the level of torture, in violation of international human rights law and the tenets of basic human dignity. The immense suffering and devastating mental, physical, and emotional harm caused by solitary confinement disproportionately impacts Black and Latinx people and those who are transgender and gender non-conforming.

What solutions exist?

To ensure the basic dignity and human rights of individuals in Department of Corrections (DOC) custody and decrease trauma and violence in New York City jails, all punitive segregation and prolonged solitary confinement must be eliminated; Enhanced Supervision Housing must be reimagined to provide actual therapeutic, restorative programming; and DOC’s use of lock-ins and lockdowns must be monitored by the courts and curtailed to allow necessary programming to continue.

New York City must enact a complete end to solitary confinement in all its forms by adopting the Blueprint for Ending Solitary Confinement in New York City Jails and the community’s proposed rules drafted by the NYC Jails Action Coalition and the #HALTsolitary campaign.

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December 2020

Written Testimony of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights on Solitary Confinement