Disability Rights California Urges Direct Cash Support, Fair Pay, and Freedom for Incarcerated Firefighters

Disability Rights California Urges Direct Cash Support, Fair Pay, and Freedom for Incarcerated Firefighters

As everyone continues to simply try and comprehend the destruction taking place in and around Los Angeles, many conversations have been started or re-opened about fire prevention, governance, and how our resources are being used. One of the most powerful stories that reemerged this past week was that of the incarcerated people, who make up a shocking 30% of California's firefighters. Regardless of where people self-identify politically, there is consensus that these brave people were risking their lives while providing a heroic and desperately needed service.
At Disability Rights California, we understand that these incarcerated firefighters are not just risking their lives, but they are also experiencing trauma and deserve support for their disabilities. We believe these firefighters deserve fair compensation in the form of money and freedom, and an opportunity to carry their skillset into a career in firefighting without conditions or restrictions. We strongly encourage the California Legislature to go above and beyond and ensure these firefighters have the resources and support they need to become firefighters upon their release.
We also want to uplift the important work being done by the Fund for Guaranteed Income (F4GI), which has launched a tool for the public to send money directly to all incarcerated firefighters in California. We believe this tool is a critical step in the right direction and should exist for disabled and non-disabled people alike, enabling all individuals to receive direct cash support.
Three Urgent Calls to Action:
- The firefighters deserve fair compensation in the form of money and freedom, and an opportunity to carry their skillset into a career in firefighting without conditions or restrictions.
- People need to be able to get money directly to the firefighters without conduits or questions.
- Everyone deserves resources in the form of cash, housing, and health, rather than hoping and waiting on bureaucracies or big business who spend more on denying people than on providing what’s needed and deserved. Universal basic income (UBI) is an urgent need, and it’s time to prioritize cash-based solutions for everyone.
Firefighters in California need direct donations because their state wages – $10.24 or less for a full day of work – are grossly insufficient. Prisons exploit poor communities for work and money. Prisons exploit prisoners for their work. People in prison don’t make enough to support their basic needs at “commissary,” the stores run by prisons for a profit selling essentials like coffee, soap, and ramen. Because people in prison can’t make enough money to meet their needs, they rely on people outside to send money into the prison. Prisons and companies that profit from prison exploit poor communities through high fees to transfer money inside.
As these fires raged, people were met with police and military and little else. Many turned to mutual aid as a way to help each other. An important evolution in how we understand mutual aid is the ability to create and develop tools that allow people to get resources to one another without having to pay the piper. Disability Rights California has worked quickly, behind the leadership and ingenuity of one of our partner organizations, to create such an opportunity.
In the meantime, we encourage the public to donate directly to incarcerated firefighters to help advance the true meaning of Universal Basic Income for all in California.
Visit Bit.ly/FirefighterGI to donate today.
Media Contacts
Carolina Valle
Disability Rights California
(818) 669-4674
carolina.valle@disabilityrightsca.org
Micah Clark Moody
Fund 4 Guaranteed Income
(614) 560-6502
micah@f4gi.org
Disability Rights California (DRC) – Is the agency designated under federal law to protect and advocate for the rights of Californians with disabilities. The mission of DRC is to defend, advance, and strengthen the rights and opportunities of people with disabilities. For more information, visit: https://www.disabilityrightsca.org
Fund 4 Guaranteed Income (F4GI) - F4GI provides a viable path to guaranteed income—direct, recurring cash transfers that support those who have been locked out of welfare programs and economic systems. For more information visit: https://f4gi.org/