Deliberate Indifference, 2021

From a small cell, I witnessed the country being brought to a standstill. Like a slow-moving train wreck, the COVID-19 virus spread, infections and deaths increasing daily. In an attempt to slow the spread of contagion and save lives, guidelines were provided and a stay-at-home order given. Across a divided nation, people clashed, lies were told as medical personnel pleaded. 

Once inside the walls of San Quentin, the virus ravaged the population. In overcrowded prisons, social distancing is impossible. Every day, alarms repeatedly sounded off as COVID-19 swept through the prison. Not all of us here have been sentenced to death, but the virus changed that. More than two-thirds of the population, including myself, became infected. Fear, anger, uncertainty, and a sense of abandonment hung in the air like a fog. I lost a friend to this virus, while some people beyond the walls bemoaned the restrictions and guidelines meant to keep them safe.

Thus, the image of this piece took form. 

Mole ruit sua: It collapses from its own bigness.

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