Points of Action

For over a year a prison in Virginia segregated women they perceived as masculine or butch (those with short hair or ‘baggy clothes’), in order to separate them from their ‘girlfriends’. The Associated Press and civil rights advocates questioned the practice, with the warden stating that no such move was made, as that would be unconstitutional.

Trina O’Neal, left, and Casey Lynn Toney were two of the inmates placed in the so-called “Butch Wing” at Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women in Troy, Va. “I have been gay all my life and never have I once felt as degraded, humiliated or questioned my own sexuality, the way I look, etc., until all of this happened,” stated O’Neal, 33. “Women sent to wing 5D — also called the “little boys wing,” “locker room wing,” and “studs wing” — told the AP they were verbally harassed by staff there, and taken to the cafeteria first or last to keep them separated from other inmates. Three guards confirmed the charges.”

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