In the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, Yo Gotti and Roc Nation’s Team Roc have continued their fight in support of inmates at Mississippi’s Parchman Prison, by demanding that the Mississippi Department of Corrections develop a plan to prevent the spread of the virus among inmates. Two more inmates have reportedly died at the prison, although it’s unknown if these deaths were related to the Coronavirus.
“Inmates at Parchman have been forced to live in deadly environments that lack clean water, adequate food, electricity, heat, access to healthcare and clothing, among many other basic human necessities,” a press release from Team Roc reads. “While visitors are restricted from accessing the prison and visiting loved ones inside, the recent classification of COVID-19 as a pandemic and the rising death toll are cause for alarm in a penitentiary already low on resources.”
The press release also states that the two recent deaths at Parchman brings the total number of inmate deaths to 26.
“These inmates have been subjected to inhumane health and safety risks, and now have to deal with the uncertainty and potential devastation of the Coronavirus, too,” Yo Gotti added in the statement. “It is imperative that the Mississippi Department of Corrections implement a plan within Parchman to provide the medical resources necessary to protect inmates that might be exposed.”
Gotti, Team Roc and JAY-Z previously filed two lawsuits demanding that conditions be improved, starting with an investigation into the prison, led by the Department of Justice. Last month, the team filed their second lawsuit on behalf of 152 inmates and called for the permanent closure of Parchman and that the prisoners be transferred to a more suitable facility.
Parchman inmates and Team Roc have exposed unlivable conditions at the prison, including a lack of beds, healthcare, security, clean water and more, as well as bug and rodent infestations.