Critics of the practice say not only is it discriminatory, but there’s no reason why a Christian religious text should be the only reading material offered to suicidal people
People on suicide watch at Sudbury Jail have no access to reading materials other than the Christian Bible, a practice critics say is both discriminatory and not based in psychological best practices.In a recent Sudbury.com article about renovations at the Sudbury Jail, Sara-Jane Berghammer, CEO of the John Howard Society, described the jail protocols for inmates who express suicidal ideations. Those inmates are placed on what is commonly called ‘suicide watch’.
She told Sudbury.com jail staff have asked John Howard to secure other religious texts, like the Quran, for its library program. However, while the Bible is offered free, an incarcerated person would have to purchase any other sort of religious text out of pocket as the library program is donation based.
“The ministry has protocols in place for the care of inmates who are at risk for suicide, including access to appropriate clinical supports, such as addiction counsellors, mental health nurses and social workers,” reads the statement provided by Hunter Kell, a junior press secretary at the Ministry of the Solicitor General. “Access to any type of reading material for inmates that are placed on a suicide watch would be determined on a case-by-case basis to ensure the inmate’s safety.
“There is no evidence that I have ever encountered that indicates that religious texts are effective in helping those who have suicidal ideation,” he said. “As someone who is greatly in favour of evidence-based treatment, I would hope that our penal system would use those materials that have proven efficacy for those in dire need. So the policy of restricting access to religious materials makes no sense to me, because there is no evidence that it will achieve its stated goal.
Not only is the practice of only providing religious texts not evidence-based, it might be discriminatory as well, and ripe for a charter challenge. “If the only thing you have is the Bible and you don't have access to anything else, I think it might be a worthwhile challenge.”
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