I voted early, and I voted “no” on the jail bond question. I have talked with my friends and neighbors, read the discourse in print media and online, and I have come to the conclusion that the proposed new jail is not good for our community.
First, county leadership has not engaged in the appropriate process to include stakeholders, consider alternatives, and provide the public with a solid rationale for its approval of the design and price tag of the proposed facility. A project with this scale and impact on the community should be decided on through a more thorough, holistic, and transparent process.
Dignity for jail users can also be shown through meaningful engagement in the process. Instead, the county has rushed this proposal through and presented it to the public as if this is the only path forward. The split in support from the supervisors themselves shows that the process did not produce adequate buy-in or consensus. Johnson County deserves better.
Further I have real concerns about supporting a plan that would allow the state to increase its ability to detain and imprison members of our community. In a time when fascism is on the rise in Iowa and across the country, it is not unreasonable to stand in opposition to giving the government more space to lock people up. The lawlessness of ICE alone should give pause for supporting increased detention space. If you believe that you will never find yourself on the wrong side of the criminal justice system or that only criminals who deserve punishment will be imprisoned in the Johnson County jail, I encourage you to consider the privilege of that position and the veracity of that belief.
The current facility can be maintained while the county develops a community-led plan to address county facilities and community safety. We can still hope for a better future than the one laid out before us.
I voted “no” on the new jail, and I encourage you to do the same.