June 3, 2024
Chairman Dick Durbin
711 Hart Senate Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Ranking Member Lindsey Graham
211 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Chairman Durbin, Ranking Member Graham, and Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee,
As a former inmate in the California state prison system, I share your concern about how women’s rights are being pushed aside compared to the interests of men who are self identifying as women and gaining entry to facilities meant for women.
Most incarcerated women have already experienced sexual trauma and violence during our lives. We are trying to heal and prepare to be productive citizens after serving out our sentences.
Having men in our prison systems disrupts all of this. We fear for our safety. We have further loss of privacy as we are forced to share intimate spaces with a man. We watch as some prisons are victims of abuse and others willingly engage is sexual acts in our shared space. This isn’t right. This isn’t fair.
My personal experience was shared in Independent Women’s Forum’s recent mini-documentary series, “Cruel & Unusual Punishment: The Male Takeover of Women’s Prisons.” I urge the Committee to watch my story, and the story of other female prisoners and a brave security guard who spoke out against this anti-woman policy. Women–including incarcerated women–shouldn’t be erased as a matter of law to accommodate the interests of men.
Sincerely,
Evelyn Valiente*
*To protect her identity and ensure safety, a pseudonym has been used throughout this letter