Kitchen, or Hell?

Kitchen, or Hell?

prison kitchens

"To work in a kitchen in prison is a worst nightmare."

"Note: Ingles is not my first language, so you'll find a bunch of mistakes but I would appreciate is someone could correct my work or just put it out like that."

Daniela Salazar

"In God's will I'll be out by September 2020, I would like to work next to people whom fight for us inmates. As an inmate, I have endless stories, experiences, comments, opinions, etc. etc. to say out loud. My name is Daniela Salazar #1974749.

ps Whom ever is interested in what I have to say please write. <3 Ella"

"PS: I am from Austin Texas and once I get out I would like to be part of all kinds of organizations that are fighting for prisoner's rights"

Inside Books Project Archive

Texas After Violence Project

17 June 2020

public -- CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Document

English

Testimony

North America--United States--Texas

[Page 1]
6-17-20
Life in prison is hard as it is, you know, away from your family, kids, and the things you like or love, truth we all did something to be in the situation we are, but when I sing for my time it did not say that, I was to work under extreamed conditions. I spended the mayority of my centense working in the kitches of TDCJ, firs Plane State, then Lockhart and Crain Unit (valley) When I was at County jail I heard stories about Prision and they were all crazy, but nobody ever told me about the Kitchen, after two months at the Plane State unit I was send to work at the kitchen and my first reaction was that of horror the condition of the place, holes in the walls, more that 5 inmates working the same area, no PPE (no gloves, sleeves, boots aprons etc.) The first day I was working at the Pots and Pans area, where you whas (are)

[Page 2] to wash big quantities of dirty stuff with only Gentel (soap) takes forever to remove burn stuff and you dont get to use gloves at the beginning of the day they provide you with a disposable hair-net wich they want you to use for at least 2 weeks (grosse), there is roches all around arround the place, and they dont care how you cook the food, it just needs to be done No condiments. You’re only aloud to 20 minutes to eat all your food and only one 8 oz cup or whatever the drink is, because of the lack of chemicals, the dishes are dirty most of the time. When is summer time you wor under the Heat, no AC, no rest. I remenver geting out with my clothes all sticking to my body. After 2 months I got move to Lockhart, whe all is better, and where I learned about safety and P.P.E they give me the right training [Page 3] wich I never recived at Plane. I was provided with a apron and disposable hair net, ruber boots and a place where I could take a brake if I need it, whater and ice where always accesible to Inmates safety and sanitation are priority at Lockhart, the nex day I showup to work one of the officers noticed that I take my hair net from my pocket, He ask where there I get it from? I told him – from here, yesterday. He laugh out loud and told me, -Girl, you are not at plane no more, you get a new one every day, is unsanitary to use the same one (drawing of a shocked face), After one month I was made a cook and I was properly trained for the job, provided with the right P.P.E. and equipment to work. I justo cook for 1,700 people, wich means if it was oven chicken day, we would bake 1,700 pices of chicken # 50 #s of Rice, 50 #s of beans

[Page 4] enough vegetables an bread for the whole unit, and thank God, condiments (smiley face). I wanted to pointout that working for 1,700 people I never got hurt never. After 7-8 months I was moved to Crain (Valley) where again was placed at the Kitchen as a cook, I was give some papers to sign and told, if I ever still, or got caugh bullshiting arround I was going to get paper in my life, the nex day I was send to the grille to make pancakes my “boss” was arguing about some-thing, so I was waiting for P.P.E. so when I ask for it I wase provided wit a disposable hair-net and told that I have to keep it for at least twoo weeks, then I ask for sleevs and gloves, and my “boss” just turned arround and laugh out loud, then turnd arround and told me, “Girl this is not Hells Kitchen”

[Page 5] for equipment, I was provided with a 4oz spoodle, a pitcher and a spatula, when time come to cook lunch, I was face with the metter that steam ketles did not work rotating oven didn’t work, and I was to used a small tiltskilet to cook the whole meal, at Crain our boss, sits at the office and talks on the phone or sleep or jus seat and talk with other offenders, people walks all arround the cooks floor, you are told to wash your hands but no body makes sure you do, the flor is always dirty and weth, the trash can is like 5 feet away from the cooks area, at this time the dish and pot room were working but a year after the dish room stoped working and dishes were whashed two feet away from the oven and tiltskilet and then I got my first burn, because is 3 people doing dishes and 3 cook all together

[Page 6] in and area at like 2 feel l long and twoo feet wide, about two months late the potroom broked too so, pots, pans, and dishes were wash at the cooks flor (they still do it that way after 4 years, the restroom drain is constantly mess up ando so is the maind drain wich mean, the water comes back-up and there is days where you we cooked ond dirty standin water and we have to keep on cooking like that, with the bad smel and the dirty water getting in our shoes, mantainess takes ther sweet time to come to fix things at this time at Valley Unit dishroom, potroom are out of service, 2 out of 3 steamkettles are out of service, the stack and rotating oven half work and, water comes back if you use the potroom, the is always standin water in the dishroom, dishes are some time washe inside

[Page 7] barrells. Peces of cilling are falling of costantly, the back dock dont work, we dont get enoug slope barrell and there is only 2 mops to use for cooks floor, general use and floor, the restroom has its own mop though. because there is not hot water at the sink on cooks floor we boiled water in one of the steamed ketles, you have at least 3 cases of acxidents with hot water, for last year ACA checkup TDC spend bunch of money on paint, yup paint if you vicit TDCJ (Crain) you’ll see all over the place Prea and A.C.A. signs. We repaint the walls and sume of the bunks, but issues like drains and non working equipment are still a problem and this is just half of the things that happened in this kitchens I will write more if people shows interest and if they don Im still going to try to put the true colos of TDCJ out for

[Page 8] public.

ELLA.

PS: I am from Austin Texas and once I get out I would like to be part of all kinds of organizations that are fighting for prisoner's rights

Note: Ingles is not my first language, so you'll find a bunch of mistakes but I would appreciate is someone could correct my work or just put it out like that.