Unmitigated Frustration: A Student's Thoughts on 'Quaranteaching'

Read one student's thoughts about schools trying to teach right now. Some on social media have dubbed it 'quaranteaching'. I like the term. This student doesn't use the term, but the concept is there. I implore you to read past grammatical and spelling errors and hear the explosions of pent-up, in-the-moment frustration. These are not the opinions of all students, but represent a portion of wide-ranging thoughts I've read or heard so far during this corona era.

why does school insist on teaching us during a global pandemic? Sometimes I be thinkin the world don't know how to do anything correctly. school is like, teaching us a whole lot about everything, but what did is really teach us to be prepared for something like this virus? Couldnt be much since the US has the highest morality rate, with the east coast being the biggest contributor to this. People getting bodied, constant. People still going outside, wildin. They should know this virus is in fact deadly and has a faster spread rate than the flu, Atleast with the flue you could get a vaccine and even if u do potentially get sick, you can recover. not saying u cant recover from corona, but the fatalities have been piling up, never ending. And school isnt really helping everyones case, most of my other friends have been swamped with work and I legit havent opened this laptop since it got here out of pure fear of the work our teachers could possibly have piled up for us. I really hope none of this is void, we can get a diploma, but that doesnt really matter when we can't handle every day to day life or sickness, maybe this is just me, me having the suspicion that school is just a memorizing game, that is ultimately pointless, but a piece of paper decides your place in society as it stands, many years of your life working up to that piece of paper"

COVID-19: UPDATE | Another death, get CNN

The incarcerated brother I've been corresponding with feels helpless! There's death everywhere.
East Jersey State Prison, where AD resides, now leads the state in the total number of inmate deaths as the result of COVID-19 and comes in 3rd for the number of employees sick with COVID-19, at FIFTY (50)!

Here's the email I received this morning:

Unk, someone else just died...This is crazy...Can you look into getting Chris Cuomo from CNN phone number so that I can speak to him about whats going on and to see if the bigger platform will make a difference? Thanks for everything, the c.o is telling me my time is up on the computer...be blessed

COVID-19 UPDATE | AD's PLEA

The latest email

Some of you have been following my blog posts detailing the COVID-19 conversations that "Ad" and I have been having. Just when I thought things were getting better; that these brothers at least finally now had masks, I receive this gut-wrenching email from AD last night:

They have my whole tier on lock down. There was to many emergency medical codes on the unit that I am on and they decided to lock us down. About half of the guys in the area that I am in is infected but they dont know who. They basically got us sitting around in a cess pool waiting for us to catch it. I already have alot of the symptoms, along with some other guys. Our c.o the other day came into work saying that he doesnt feel good His name is Officer ***** . He end up passing out in front of me after coming into contact with us and now the unit is on lock down. I need you to get in contact with my mom and see if yall can get us some help. They need to test us and seperate the negative from the positive so we wont get sick and God forbid die. They are not treating us right...Please help. thanks alot and I appreciate all of the help..Be bless and I love you man of God...Tell my mother I love her....********

The **** replace:
1. The officer's name
2. His mother's phone number

Click me

Info from the NJDOC website
"As of 4/17/2020, 95 inmates have been tested – 68 positive, 12 negative, 15 pending. Please refer to question 18 regarding how testing is determined"

No wait, they just updated it...

"As of 4/20/2020, 115 inmates have been tested for COVID-19—91 positive, 15 negative and nine pending. Please refer to question 18 regarding how testing is determined."

Here's how the answer to "Question 18" reads.

How does NJDOC determine who will be tested? Will testing be provided for prisoners who request it or show symptoms?

Inmate patients presenting with mild upper respiratory symptoms are evaluated by medical staff and placed in medical isolation units in the facility. In accordance with NJDOH guidance, these inmates may be released from medical isolation seven days from the onset of symptoms and at least three days after the resolution of fever and significant improvement in symptoms. Inmate patients in the isolation unit must wear surgical masks for movements in and out of the unit. The staff, both medical and custody, must wear full PPE in and out of the isolation unit.

Inmate patients presenting with flu-like symptoms and/or COVID-19 symptoms shall be evaluated by medical staff and directed to the hospital if they exhibit fever/cough/shortness of breath. The inmate patient will be evaluated by the hospital, medically isolated, and provided a COVID-19 test. Inmate patients may be discharged if the COVID-19 test is negative, and the inmate patient is medically cleared to return to the facility. Inmates released from the hospital are admitted to infirmary level care at the facility until released by medical staff. Inmates admitted to the infirmary are monitored for co-morbid conditions as they recover from their illness. Staff having contact with the inmate in the infirmary shall wear full PPE equipment.

Inmates with known exposure to COVID-19 shall be quarantined in a specifically designated quarantine unit within the facility. The inmates shall be monitored by medical staff. If the inmate becomes symptomatic during this 14-day quarantine period, they will be evaluated for medical isolation or referred to a hospital for evaluation and testing.

COVID-19: The View from Prison & the Gov's email

This brother is on lock in more ways than one. *insert deep sigh*
In addition to the regular exchanged pleasantries, here is the latest on AD's situation per an unedited excerpt from his latest email to me.

The govenor sent out a blast email to the population here and our family members saying all of the stuff that they are suppose to be doing for us but they are not like giving mask, extra soap, extra disinfect. I wrote the administration here to ask them why are we not getting the stuff that the govenor said that we are suppose to get and they said in not so many words that they dont care and that we are beat. This place is a mess!

The numbers of those who have COVID-19, be they employees or those incarcerated are staggering. At East Jersey alone, 35 employees and 8 inmates have COVID-19. Sadly, 2 inmates have died from the virus. East Jersey isn't the worst case.

I read through the FAQs. The responses appear to be more robust than they were just a week or so ago as indicated by the "As of 4/16" note and my own observation. That the response in the facilities themselves is as robust? Per AD, it's "a mess."

My email to New Jersey's Department of Corrections this morning.

Good Morning,
Regarding inmates receiving masks during this coronavirus crisis, to what extent are all inmates receiving masks? I've been corresponding with a mentee of mine who says that they're not getting them over at your East Jersey facility. He's naturally concerned given the number of employees and inmates who are contracting the virus and those who are dying from it. Your website says that "all inmates and residents are provided with surgical masks for use during the COVID-19 pandemic with instructions on proper usage."

Are we allowed to mail cloth or surgical masks?

Please advise...

Stephen R. Flemming

COVID-19: My email to Governor Murphy regarding East Jersey State Prison

Here is my email to Governor Murphy of New Jersey.
I included the hyperlinks only in this blog post.


Greetings Governor Murphy,

I have been corresponding with a young man who is an inmate at East Jersey State Prison. This facility has the 3rd highest number of cases of COVID-19 for employees and is tied for 3rd in cases for inmates. He is very concerned about what he perceives as the lack of efforts to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus inside of the prison. At the same time, he is also concerned that many officials inside of the prison are using this pandemic to limit access to hot water and time for recreation. He pleaded with me to reach out to you! On his and the other inmates' behalf, I'm doing just that as a concerned citizen. Please have someone look into these allegations.

Thank you,
Stephen R. Flemming

COVID-19: *Update* on The View from Prison

A few days ago I blogged about a brother I know who is incarcerated. He had some concerns about the spread of coronavirus inside of the facility where he is located. Tonight, I wanted to see how he was doing. Here's the unedited text of the email I saw waiting for me.

Hey unk I need some help with this corona pandemic. Is there anyway you can reach out to the news or cnn on my behalf? There are alot of confirmed cases, they are keeping them housed in the main building, they are not doing anything to test us to seperate the sick from the healthy, they are not providing us with mask, and its always an issue when we want to come out of our cells for hot water. They limited our recreation privelages which doesnt allow everyone to go out. They said that they are trying to enforce social distancing but the yard is big enough to allow us to have our recreation time and still practice social distancing. When need a voice out there. I am at East Jersey State Prison in Rahway NJ. The name that you can use for your inside source is AD...I wish there was a way for us to contact the govenors office but theres not a way for us to do so. So can you please look into a way to help. Thanks for everything. I will hit you up in a couple of days...

Disturbing.

According to New Jersey's own Department of Corrections, COVID-19 website, this facility has the 3rd highest number of prison employees who are infected and ties with another prison for the 3rd highest number of inmates who are infected. AD's concerns are real and he has every right to be apprehensive.

Dear Governor Murphy,
I know you have a lot on your plate, but on behalf of AD and those with him, can you please do just a little more?

Sincerely,
Unk, AD, and the rest of the brothas

COVID-19: The View from Prison

This introduction won't be long. I have close relationships with people who had been to prison and with people still in prison. Some are former students and others are like family.  Some are home. This brother is not. We've been maintaining contact for the past several years. The last we corresponded was earlier this year, before this current pandemic brought the world to a screeching halt. That's important for context. This is the body of the email he sent this past week out of the blue. I didn't edit a single word.

"They are really trying to force this "social distanceing" here in the prison and its really messing up the flow of things and how we break up our days here being locked up. They are doing crazy stuff with the recreation schedule and thats the main thing these guys use here to escape from there problems and their physical bondage. I guess all we have now is our agency, lol half of these guys dont even know what that is but they better learn quick because this pandemic is playing with people minds inside of here, not mine though, I know where my help comes from. So please keep the brothers that are here in our ministry covered in prayer as well as the general population of the prison system, that God gives us peace and keeps us covered from all hurt, harm and danger under the blood in Jesus' name. I will talk to you soon. Please be safe and wash your hands. God Bless..."

In my reply, I asked if I could share his experiences with the world; that I wouldn't give any identifying information whatsoever.
His reply...

"Hey, yes you can definitly share my perspective and you can use my name if you want to, I dont mind. Yeah man things are rough in here. There are 9 confirmed cases that I know of here. Its like every other day a medical code goes off and 9 times out of 10 its because of the "rona" lol. Its sad. I was watching CNN and to see all of those doctors coming out of retirement to try to help people because they feel like its their calling, knowing that they have a family that they have to go back home to that they might effect is a lesson of selflessness and humility, and its a reminder as a child of God that we need to do better. I have definitly been blesses by those stories. I also feel like this pandemic is a call to repentence. Hopefully the world can see."

I deleted from these excerpts, inquiries about my family and other small talk that may have preceded or followed these paragraphs. The paragraphs themselves are unaltered, pure insider thoughts and experiences. Until now I've just retweeted others' thoughts and calls to government officials to do better because I agreed with them. I reckon it's time that I do some pushing and prodding myself, somehow. This brother, his family and I and my family are all people of faith. The book of James teaches us that faith without works is "dead being alone." Say less.