Dear Friend,
For years, Prison Radio Correspondent Krystal Clark has been suffering abuse and medical neglect at Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Michigan. Now, she needs our help. Women’s Huron Valley (WHV), a prison approximately one hour east of Detroit has long been plagued by dangerous toxic black mold. In 2019, five law firms filed a class action suit against the prison alleging overcrowding, chaos, and damp and poorly ventilated conditions that have led to toxic mold. The suit stated that “the mold has caused respiratory infections, coughing, wheezing, rashes, dizziness, and fatigue — all symptoms which, in turn, impact the inflicted’s mental health and which may lead to serious, long-lasting physical effects, such as asthma, life-threatening secondary infections, insomnia, memory loss, trouble concentrating and confusion.” In 2023, a federal court dismissed the suit, stating that prison officials had no responsibility to protect prisoners from the mold.
Listen to Krystal’s most recent Commentary
The mold has only worsened, and Krystal’s severe mold allergy has caused myriad medical conditions, including ongoing respiratory issues such as chronic asthma. Medical staff at the prison have largely ignored Krystal’s pleas for help. Recently, Krystal’s state has deteriorated further and green puss has been leaking from her ears. Instead of addressing her medical emergency, prison doctors have put Krystal in medical segregation and refused to let her see an outside doctor. Their justification? Krystal has COVID-19, even though she has not tested positive for the virus. Krystal told her outside supporters that the cell she is confined in is caked in feces and urine. Krystal was released from medical segregation only to be held in the most mold-infested part of the prison. She has reported that the sink in her cell is broken, and the drinking water contains a black substance confirmed by staff to be mold. Now, a phone campaign is underway to demand Krystal receive medical treatment for her respiratory illness, allow her to see an outside doctor, and end the years of retaliation against Krystal for speaking up about conditions at WHV.
In her most recent commentary, Krystal emotionally shared “I’m really sick, y’all, I’m really not doing good. I’ve been telling the nurses that I cannot breathe. I feel like something is going to happen y’all. I really cannot breathe. I have chronic asthma, I have more than chronic asthma. They know. I asked for breathing treatment. I asked the nurse. He said ‘What’s going on,’ I told him what was going on. He told me I was alright. He knows I’m not alright! You know something’s wrong, please. ‘You don’t need no treatment, I don’t hear nothing’….I can’t breathe. He knows I can’t breathe. They took my wheelchair.” Despite her pleas, Krystal did not receive medical care for her breathing.
Krystal recently wrote to us and thanked Prison Radio “for everything you all have done. if it weren’t for you all my voice or story wouldn’t have been able to get out into the world as well as others’ stories as well. I’m so grateful to be able to have this outlet to get my story out there.” We’re committed to supporting Krystal through this challenging time, and we know you will show up for her, too.
Krystal is a mother, grandmother, activist, and beloved community member. She needs our help. Please take a few minutes out of your day to call and advocate for Krystal’s right to medical care. And to learn more about the fight to bring Krystal home, check out https://freekrystal.com/.
In solidarity,
Madeleine Matz
Artwork by José “Primo” Hernandez Diaz for Agitarte