Advocate calls St. Louis jail uprising “an act of courage”

Advocates say inmates who set fires and broke windows at a St. Louis jail over the weekend did so to protest inhumane conditions, including a lack of personal protective equipment to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

The leader of the group Ex-Incarcerated People Organizing St. Louis said during a virtual rally Sunday that the uprising was “an act of courage“ necessitated by inmates’ basic needs not being met.

More than 100 inmates broke out of their cells at the downtown facility on Saturday and smashed windows and set fires.