Customer Reviews

Breaking the Walls of Silence: Aids and Women in a New York State Maximum Security Prison

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My name appears as the last entry on the page of women inmates infected with HIV (aka Francine Rodriquez). The ACE program helped me to be where I am today. I was an ACE staff member during the years of 1996-2000. That program, along with: the inmate women, inmate ACE staff member, civilan supervisors and prison administration helped me become the woman I am today. Today I work in Amethyst Women's Project which is a crisis intervention/referral service. In this agency I work as a HIV educator/outreach worker, facilitator of Women's HIV Support Group and I work in the feild of substance abusers. My life is complete today. It was behind those walls where I was able to grow and to face many of my life issues that kept me from moving on and giving myself a better life. When I was paroled in 2000 I left behind many women whose lives have touched mine as I have touched theirs. A few of my friends have sentences that range from` 15, 20, 25 yrs. to life. Those women are not only doing time they are also living and fighting the HIV virus that resides within them. I made it out alive--not many will. The voices of those women deserve to be heard for there are many. I am just one....

My name appears as the last entry on the page of women inmates infected with HIV (aka Francine Rodriquez). The ACE program helped me to be where I am today. I was an ACE staff member during the years of 1996-2000. That program, along with: the inmate women, inmate ACE staff member, civilan supervisors and prison administration helped me become the woman I am today. Today I work in Amethyst Women's Project which is a crisis intervention/referral service. In this agency I work as a HIV educator/outreach worker, facilitator of Women's HIV Support Group and I work in the feild of substance abusers. My life is complete today. It was behind those walls where I was able to grow and to face many of my life issues that kept me from moving on and giving myself a better life. When I was paroled in 2000 I left behind many women whose lives have touched mine as I have touched theirs. A few of my friends have sentences that range from` 15, 20, 25 yrs. to life. Those women are not only doing time they are also living and fighting the HIV virus that resides within them. I made it out alive--not many will. The voices of those women deserve to be heard for there are many. I am just one....

What a wonderful idea and help for all women. Now will anyone here them? It sounds like a good idea but will anyone in this world here anything from the women in prison? Do we still stoop so low that we do not honor a women in prison and the help about aids is invaluable. How can we get this out into the public? Will the health of our country be changed if we hear their voices? I want people to hear there voices and make them credible. We need the knowledge and the pain and suffering which these women have to put up with and poor health care could break your heart. Many times women do things against others not for the same reasons men do, but for lack of money and a place to live. Many times they must have food for there children and diapers for there little ones, that is the heart of being a women. Sometimes things happen and they are sent to prison. Many times they already have aids but remember it was given to them by men! How can we as a group help them and hear there voices? Think of that! They are alive even in the worst conditions so I think whatever knowledge they have it should be brought out to the schools, to the radio, to the tv etc. We need to know.