Visit to Kent Institution

I recently had the unique opportunity to visit three federal prisons in British Columbia, accompanied by lifelong prisoner rights advocate and my friend, Senator Kim Pate. Our third and final visit was to Kent Institution, the only federal maximum-security prison for men in the Pacific Region. When we arrived, we were met by the senior staff at the prison who informed us that out of 240 men inside, 88 (about 1/3) are Indigenous, 22 are Black. We also learned that some prisoners feel the prison has created a racist and toxic environment. This is another reminder of the racism and discrimination that happens behind prison walls every day.