"The Box: 27 Years in Solitary Confinement" - Short Film

The US has for years been the world’s biggest jailer. Now prison watchdogs are highlighting the widespread use of solitary confinement, warning about the physical and mental toll that the practice exerts on inmates. More than 122,000 people are being held in solitary confinement at any one time in US prisons and jails, according to a report, "Calculating Torture," by Unlock The Box and Solitary Watch based on 2019 data.

Inmates separated from the general prison population routinely face at least 22 hours alone each day. In many cases, people are held in solitary confinement, known as ‘restrictive housing’ or ‘administrative segregation’ by corrections authorities, for weeks, months or even years. Psychiatrists say prolonged isolation has a devastating impact on prisoners’ mental health, and United Nations experts say solitary confinement beyond 15 days is torture.

‘The Box‘, a film by Al Jazeera, highlights the case of Dennis Wayne Hope, a prisoner who was held in solitary confinement for 27 years and was only released into the general prison population after a legal challenge. Hope escaped prison in 1994. After being recaptured, he was placed in isolation, where he witnessed suicides, experienced hallucinations, and heard voices that were a figment of his imagination.

This film works alongside research projects around the country focusing on the effort to end the use of isolation in prison. These efforts have been spearheaded by people in confinement, by communities, by organizations (including organizations of correctional leaders), and by legislators.

Watch the full short film "The Box" at the Al Jazeera website. (TW: the film contains disturbing images and mentions of self-harm and suicide.)