Do They Hear You When You Cry by Fauziya Kassindja and Layli Miller Bashir

[Nic]

Do They Hear You When You Cry
As a nurse, what I found disheartening in this book was the lack of medical care appropriated to prisoners and immigrants, asking for appointments. Also pertinent to the field is the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM) and our role in advocating for women. Here is my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Amanda]

This is a great topic for nurses, and I will add this book to my to read list and will add further comments to this discussion along with my own review in the future. 😊 One thing I would like to add is that this problem does not just extend to refugees, but to many other incarcerated and vulnerable populations. Many individuals in prison lack access to good healthcare. It's unfortunate that in the US we do not work to rehabilitate inmates, but instead force them out of society to perpetuate poor health outcomes and criminal behavior. Refugees and asylum seekers especially need clemency to prevent further harm. We should actively vote on current issues and help reform our justice system in order to improve the outlook for these populations. These individuals deserve equal rights and equal access regardless of the "crime comitted." One book that I recommend everyone reads is The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. It highlights some of the disparities among people of color. While this book does not address refugees and asylum seekers, it does talk about some of the systemic problems within the US. I highly recommend. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...

[Nic]

Yes, while reading Fauziya's book I kept wondering if she received worse treatment for being African. I know she was put in isolation the night before a procedure to make certain she remained NPO. However, when she was finally at her appointment, she spoke with another inmate who was receiving the same procedure, and happened to be white, but did not have to be put into isolation the evening before her procedure. There were other incidents where I also felt she was discriminated against, based on color, possibly, but I'm not certain. For example, why was she so often detained in maximum while other immigrants were not? The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness is added to my "to read" list. :)