Fighting For the Right to Call Home

Fighting For the Right to Call Home

There are over two million men and women incarcerated in the United States and most cannot afford to call their families.

Facebook
Twitter
Email
Flipboard
Pocket

These are the facts: there are over two million men and women incarcerated in the United States. Over half of the US prison population is held at least 100 miles from their families. And for most of those incarcerated, a fifteen minute phone call is prohibitively expensive.

For years, telephone companies have paid prisons for the right to be the sole provider at their facilities—the cost of these commissions are passed on to the prisoners and their families in the form of high rates, surcharges, and fees. A fifteen minute call can cost families as much as $20.

Thankfully, that may soon be changing, at least in part. On August 9th, the FCC passed a set of rules that will drastically reduce the cost of interstate phone calls between prisoners and their family and contacts on the outside. But these new rules won’t reduce costs for in-state calls, and don’t address the needs of hard-of-hearing and deaf inmates. This video, produced by Line Break Media in association with the Campaign for Prison Phone Justice, outlines the next steps to making calls more affordable for all prisoners. Learn more about the campaign at PhoneJustice.org, and take a moment to thank FCC Chairwoman Mignon Clyburn and other champions who helped make this victory possible.

—Jake Scobey-Thal

Can we count on you?

In the coming election, the fate of our democracy and fundamental civil rights are on the ballot. The conservative architects of Project 2025 are scheming to institutionalize Donald Trump’s authoritarian vision across all levels of government if he should win.

We’ve already seen events that fill us with both dread and cautious optimism—throughout it all, The Nation has been a bulwark against misinformation and an advocate for bold, principled perspectives. Our dedicated writers have sat down with Kamala Harris and Bernie Sanders for interviews, unpacked the shallow right-wing populist appeals of J.D. Vance, and debated the pathway for a Democratic victory in November.

Stories like these and the one you just read are vital at this critical juncture in our country’s history. Now more than ever, we need clear-eyed and deeply reported independent journalism to make sense of the headlines and sort fact from fiction. Donate today and join our 160-year legacy of speaking truth to power and uplifting the voices of grassroots advocates.

Throughout 2024 and what is likely the defining election of our lifetimes, we need your support to continue publishing the insightful journalism you rely on.

Thank you,
The Editors of The Nation

Ad Policy
x