Putin has held ambitions to bring Ukraine back into Russia’s sphere of influence since his early political career, regularly citing his belief that they have always been a single nation and that during the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Ukraine was corrupted by Western powers and turned against its historic allies. (Recent polls indicate that a majority of Ukrainians favor a transatlantic military alliance with the West.) For Putin, the reasons for invading seem to be as much for a sense of sentimental national pride and historical revisionism as they are for any tangible benefits that might be achieved by gaining access to Ukraine’s resources as a country.

What will happen next?

While many are reluctant to predict the next steps in the crisis for fear of catastrophizing around what is already a tragedy, it is likely that the conflict will escalate. Today’s attacks made it clear that Putin’s intentions are not simply to annex the contested border regions, but to target Ukraine as a whole. Some are predicting that his primary objective is to overthrow the current leadership and install a “puppet regime” in its place that is sympathetic to Russian interests.

It is not likely, however, that the West will engage in physical armed conflict, but there is every possibility the conflict could usher in a new era of cyber warfare. A wide range of economic sanctions are also expected to be put in place by G7 member states and their allies, after senior politicians from around the globe coordinate their plans throughout the rest of today. These may extend as far as to impact Putin’s personal wealth and those of his closest associates, many of whom have major assets and investments in countries such as the U.S. and U.K. who are firmly opposed to Russia’s intervention. Whether these diplomatic efforts will help to deescalate the crisis in any way remains to be seen.

How can we help?

Already, major protests and demonstrations in support of the Ukrainian’s right to independence have begun taking place outside of Russian embassies in major cities across the globe, with more expected to follow this coming weekend. In terms of providing concrete support for displaced or vulnerable communities on the ground in Ukraine, however, a number of NGOs and organizations are already actively working to provide food, shelter, and medical supplies for civilians affected by the crisis.

A helpful minisite has been put together by the independent Ukrainian English-language digital news site, The Kyiv Independent. The outlet has gathered together a number of resources to learn more about the crisis as well as a selection of verified charities seeking donations, including Voices of Children, who work with children affected by the war in eastern Ukraine. Meanwhile, the Ukraine Crisis Media Center has a number of alternative means of supporting the country’s efforts to resist invasion, including supporting boycotts, joining local rallies, and reaching out to your political representatives.

This article first appeared on Vogue.

It’s late. You’re a woman, alone, on your way home. Even though you’ve done nothing wrong, you’re worried for your safety. At least, you tell yourself, there are people around. It’s a thought many of us have used to comfort ourselves when walking as a woman at night—nothing too bad can happen with so many witnesses. Someone will help me. 

That wasn’t the case last week in Philadelphia, police say, when a woman was raped on a train in front of a group of strangers who did not intervene or call 911. Reports say there were “several” passengers in the car who observed as a man, Fiston Ngoy, assaulted and then raped an unnamed woman. Ngoy was not armed. Police Superintendent Timothy Bernhardt told The New York Times that investigations have turned up reports—so far unconfirmed—that some passengers filmed the rape on their phones. 

A transportation worker eventually boarded the train and called 911, a spokesperson for the Transit Authority told the Times. Shortly after, a police officer entered the car and arrested Ngoy. Bernhardt said footage from the train shows that the passengers could have intervened, but did not. 

It’s a story that seems to illustrates two distinct, extreme evils—direct violence, and passive acceptance of that violence by regular people. The story has captured national attention, twinning horribly with the recent Gabby Petito homicide story. Under these conditions of violence against women from strangers and partners, in public and in private, how can any woman or gender minority person feel safe? 

The horrific reports have inspired comparisons to the famous case of Kitty Genovese, a young woman who was murdered in New York City in 1964 on her way home from work. The front page New York Times report of the event bore the headline “37 Who Saw Murder Didn’t Call the Police; Apathy at Stabbing of Queens Woman Shocks Inspector.” The story provoked an uproar and led psychologists to coin the term “bystander effect.” 

But decades later, subsequent investigations of the case led the Times to acknowledge “errors” in its own investigations. “The article grossly exaggerated the number of witnesses and what they had perceived,” a 2016 piece in the Times reported. “None saw the attack in its entirety. Only a few had glimpsed parts of it, or recognized the cries for help.” In fact, two neighbors called the police after the event. 

The news about the rape on the Philadelphia train is still emerging. So far, reports have only been released by law enforcement officials and by the Transportation Authority. Increasingly, journalists have pointed out that it’s inappropriate to take police accounts as the final word on crime reporting—think of the way Minneapolis police first shared the news of George Floyd’s murder: “Man Dies After Medical Incident During Police Interaction.” 

But even as we get more clarity on this story—how many people looked on and did not help, whether or not it’s true that strangers decided to turn the worst moment of a woman’s life into entertainment—the horror is undeniable. We know that people are capable of sexual violence as individuals and in groups, in public and in private. One of the many things that makes this story is so troubling is the way it illustrates, in an extreme way, how much rape culture is simply…culture. 

If a woman cannot get help while she is being raped by a stranger in public, what is the hope for people who are, at much higher rates, raped or assaulted behind closed closed doors, usually by a person they know? In courthouses and in the court of public opinion, rape survivors are pressed to provide “evidence” of the crime committed against them, even though by its nature, sexual assault is often impossible to prove. The events on the Philadelphia train are a stark example of the how evidence can be dismissed—even when it appears, live, in front of people’s eyes. 

Why don’t survivors instantly report their assaults? In a culture where violence against women is so normalized that it can happen like it did in Philadelphia, it’s a wonder that anyone reports assault at all. 

Jenny Singer is a staff writer for Glamour. You can follow her on Twitter. 

For the November 2001 issue of Glamour, over two dozen reporters interviewed 20 women about their experiences on September 11—rushing to get their stories before the issue went to press. Two decades later, we’re republishing their stories in this special look into our archives. 

GENELLE GUZMAN, 31, WAS ONE OF FIVE SURVIVORS PULLED FROM THE RUBBLE OF THE WORLD TRADE CENTER. 

When my building, the North Tower, first started to shake, I thought it was an earthquake. I called my boyfriend, Roger, and he said, “I’m coming—meet me downstairs.” But then a P.A. announcement said to stay put, so some of us went back to the office.

A while later, smoke poured in, and everyone rushed to the stairwell. We all started down the stairs from the 64th floor together like a human chain. When we reached the 13th floor, I paused to take off my high-heel shoes, and suddenly, boom! The building began to collapse around me. I fell to the floor grasping my coworker’s hand but then lost her grip.

Debris fell from above, followed by total darkness and quiet. I tried to lift my head, but it was stuck between two concrete slabs. For several hours, I pulled, screaming from the pain, until my head broke free. My hip was pinned beneath more concrete, and as I tried to wriggle my legs free, I felt a body nearby. I thought if I could reach him, he could help me, but when I got close, I realized he was dead.

I never slept, not for a minute. I knew if I slept, I’d die. Instead, I prayed and thought about my daughter and Roger. They kept me alive.

When the firefighter found me 24 hours later, my eyes had swollen shut, so I could barely make out his uniform. Roger met me at the hospital. The first thing he said was “I love you.” I just cried. After four days of surgery on my right leg, they think I’ll be able to walk again. The same day the firefighter found me, Roger proposed. And I said yes.

SONYA ROSS, 39, IS A WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT. SHE WAS ON AIR FORCE ONE WITH THE PRESIDENT WHEN THE TWIN TOWERS COLLAPSED.

All of the reporters were staring at the TV in silence. I saw the text on the screen announcing that the first tower was collapsing, but I tore myself away so I could review my notes. Then I heard the TV reporter yell, “The second tower is collapsing!” I looked up. I hadn’t seen any images of the first collapse. It hit me then that there must have been thousands of people in those buildings who were dying. My hands flew to my mouth in horror. “Oh, my God,” I said. It had been very quiet on the plane until then. As a reporter, I try to stay emotionally detached. But when something like that happens, how can you not feel it? How can you suppress it.

EDRA KEHOE, 32, WORKED SEVEN BLOCKS FROM THE WORLD TRADE CENTER. SHE DESPERATELY SOUGHT NEWS OF HER HUSBAND, A NEW YORK CITY FIREFIGHTER. 

When I heard that a plane went through the World Trade Center, I went down to the street. Then I saw the second plane hit, and I just lost it. I went looking for my husband’s fire truck, but I had to evacuate. People were running everywhere. I saw people bleeding, people falling. I saw one man sitting on a bench, covered in soot. His mouth was open and he wasn’t even able to talk. I heard people say, “Those poor firemen.” That’s all I heard. Then the towers started crumbling.

I went looking for my husband at his firehouse on the Lower East Side. I saw four firemen in there. One of them said, “Can we help you?” And I said, “I’m Michael Kehoe’s wife.” He said, “He’s not here—he’s down at the World Trade Center.” My whole body went numb. I just sat in the firehouse. Three hours later, the phone rang. Another fireman answered the phone and said, “Mike?” And I thought, Is that Mikey? I got on the phone and he started screaming, “I love you! I love you!”

One of the highest profile cases of the “Me Too” era, comedian and actor Bill Cosby, will soon be a free man.

The 83-year-old star was convicted of sexual assault in 2018 and has since served over two years of a three-to-10-year sentence in a facility near Philadelphia. Temple University employee Andrea Constand accused Bill Cosby of drugging and molesting her in 2004; charges were brought up in 2015, just before the statute of limitations expired, explains CNBC. At the first trial, the judge allowed another of Cosby’s alleged victims to testify—but after the jury deadlocked, five other accusers were allowed to speak at the second trial, which resulted in a conviction. The testimony was used to demonstrate a pattern of behavior. In 2015, dozens of other accusers went on the record.

In 2018, Constand spoke bravely and eloquently of the incident and its impact, saying, “During the assault I was paralyzed and completely helpless. I could not move my arms or legs. I couldn’t speak or even remain conscious. I was completely vulnerable, and powerless to protect myself. After the assault, I wasn’t sure what had actually happened but the pain spoke volumes. The shame was overwhelming. Self-doubt and confusion kept me from turning to my family or friends as I normally did. I felt completely alone, unable to trust anyone, including myself.” You can read her full statement here.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday, June 30, that this extra testimony in the second trial tainted it and dropped all charges against the actor, citing “an agreement he had with a prior prosecutor.” But the details of this agreement are still unclear. News outlets are reporting that the new ruling bars retrial and that his conviction is tossed for good.

We’ll keep you updated on any developments. 

Juneteenth is on its way to becoming a federal holiday. The Senate unanimously passed a decision on Tuesday establishing June 19 as Juneteenth National Independence Day, a federal holiday celebrating the end of slavery in the United States.

The day has long been celebrated within the Black community, but legislation gained traction during the Black Lives Matter uprising following the murder of George Floyd by police officer Derek Chauvin. Couple that with the Democrat majority in Congress, and the bill was passed with little pushback. Wisconsin Republican senator Ron Johnson did express opposition to the bill in 2020, but said in a statement that he will support it since “there is no appetite in Congress to further discuss the matter.”

Vice President Kamala Harris introduced the bill to make Juneteenth a federal holiday in 2020 when she was still a senator. “Juneteenth is a day to remember the millions who died from enslavement in America, and those who survived and fought to end it,” Harris tweeted on June 18 of last year. “And it needs to be a national holiday. We’re introducing a bill to do just that.”

Juneteenth will become a federal holiday once passed by the House of Representatives. However, the announcement has been met with some criticism, with many pointing out that this is a distraction from important racial issues.

As columnist Renée Graham tweeted, “The Senate unanimously passed legislation to make Juneteenth a federal holiday, yet many of these senators don’t want schoolchildren to be taught why Juneteenth is relevant or the centuries-long atrocities that preceded it.” 

Others point out that while Juneteenth becoming a federal holiday is important, so is teaching about it in schools. “Getting Juneteenth recognized as a national holiday doesn’t stop the fight for police reform & reparations. It’s an opportunity to TEACH the masses about an important part of AA history,” one user tweeted.

Others are calling out the hypocrisy of the bill:

Twitter users are also reminding people of the huge reform that needs to be done within the police force and voting laws. “I have mixed feelings about making Juneteenth a federal holiday,” Terrance D. Carroll, the former speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives, tweeted. “It’s probably a good thing, but I refuse to get too excited about something that doesn’t fundamentally change the status quo. A game changer is passing the John Lewis Voting Rights Act.”

The John Lewis Voting Rights Act is proposed legislation that would restore and strengthen parts of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, especially certain portions that were altered by the United States Supreme Court in 2013 after the Shelby County v. Holder decision.

And then there is the conversation surrounding the reparations that were promised to victims of slavery and their descendants that were never received. 

The reaction to the Juneteenth news is a reminder that although this is a step forward, there’s still a long way to go.

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case on a Mississippi abortion law challenging Roe v. Wade. The decision to review Jackson Women’s Health Organization v. Dobbs next term was made on Monday, May 17, after being rescheduled for the court’s consideration in conference more than a dozen times.

The controversial law seeks to ban abortions in Mississippi provided after the 15-week mark. In 1973, the court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade gave women the constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy during the first 24 weeks, when the fetus is incapable of surviving outside the womb. In this latest case, SCOTUS will review whether all state laws, like the one passed in Mississippi, that ban previability abortions are unconstitutional.

If the Supreme Court upholds Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban, it will pose a threat to abortion rights nationwide. The ban was signed into law in 2018 by former Republican governor Phil Bryant. The only noted exception was for medical emergencies or cases in which there is a “severe fetal abnormality.” Instances of rape or incest were not considered exemptions. A federal judge in Mississippi struck down the law later that year, and the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling in December 2019. Now the Supreme Court, which currently has a 6-3 conservative majority since Amy Coney-Barrett’s appointment, will potentially rule on the case in the middle of the 2022 midterm elections.

What this means for Roe v. Wade right now

The decision on the Mississippi abortion law will affect the future of Roe v. Wade in a time when other states like Louisiana and Alabama are attempting to strip women of their reproductive freedoms. The Center for Reproductive Rights published a report showing that if Roe fell tomorrow, 24 states would likely take action to ban abortion outright. Eleven states already have “trigger bans” in place, which would ban abortion immediately if Roe v. Wade is overturned.

Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, tells Glamour that federal protections are what will matter if the ban is upheld. “One of the most important things is to make sure we have protection at the federal level,” Northup explains. “We’re going to need to have nationwide protections should the Supreme Court weaken those protections at all. We want to make sure that the EACH Act and the Women’s Health Protection Act are there as strong federal safeguards.”

Kristyn Brandi, M.D., an ob-gyn and board chair of Physicians for Reproductive Health, agrees. “I am very concerned by this and other attacks on reproductive health care during a global pandemic,” Brandi said in a statement. “We should be making care more accessible, not limiting options. That is why federal legislation like the Women’s Health Protection Act and the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act are so important. The evidence is clear—abortion is health care. We should not be questioning the validity of this fact.”

How the law could affect Mississippi 

Jackson Women’s Health Organization is the only abortion clinic in Mississippi. Restrictions on abortions have a disproportionate impact on communities who are already inequitably impacted by barriers to health care. These communities include BIPOC people capable of pregnancy, people with low incomes, people living in rural communities, and LGBTQIA people.

“It is very disheartening to me that often your reproductive health care depends on your zip code,” Brandi tells Glamour. “I want people in Mississippi to be able to access the same quality health care, including abortion care, as they could anywhere else. All people should have access to care. We should be trying to strengthen the care of all people, not weaken it with partisan legislation.”

Clinic director Shannon Brewer is the plaintiff in the case and says that the clinic doesn’t provide abortions past 16 weeks. When asked the percentage of patients who receive abortions after 15 weeks, she said, “A rough estimate is 10%.”

Northup added that the low percentage of women seeking abortions past the 15-week mark shows that the legislation is about trying to roll back abortion rights. “I think this shows how much this is a political tactic to seek to destroy the fabric of Roe v. Wade,” she said. “It’s a small percentage of women…. This is part of what’s been a strategy for years.”

What happens next

The vast majority of Americans support reproductive freedom. Polling has found that 77% support Roe v. Wade, and there is no state in the country where banning abortion is popular. 

“Everyone across the country who cares about this issue needs to get motivated and active now,” Northup says. “You need to make sure that both the White House and the Congress understand that we are going to have these rights protected and not go backward.”

I can remember the exact age I had “the talk” with my son. It’s the talk that many Black parents are forced to have with their children about police and what to do when you’re confronted by an officer. At the time, he was in the fourth grade and we were living in a Maryland suburb. His school was across a field located in front of our house, and one afternoon shortly after he came home, we both noticed some high school students sitting curbside, being handcuffed by police.

The group of boys couldn’t have been older than 15. I overheard a cop mention something about marijuana, immediately followed by one of the boys asking if he could call his mom. I stood in front of my door, hoping they would notice I was there. Because they were in our condo, I yelled and asked the boy for his mother’s phone number. I wasn’t prepared to hear what he said next.

“Please call my mother, she’s a cop. Just ask for [redacted] at the [redacted] police station,” the teenager said. My son looked at me and asked why they were handcuffed, even though they were only kids. And that’s when we had the talk.

I told him about the history between Black people and the police, and I tried my hardest not to go into an ACAB rant. I explained there weren’t enough good cops in the world. I talked about Rodney King and every other Black person who had an encounter with police that ended in death. We discussed what he should do if he ever comes in contact with an officer: “Comply. Listen. Remain calm.” Who knew, years later, after sending him off to college, I’d be living my worst nightmare.

As I watched the George Floyd video when it went viral last year, I was brought to tears when I heard him call for his mother. It brought me back to my son’s freshman year in college at a university in Virginia. His first semester went off without a bump. But one fateful night, during his second semester, I received a late-night phone call. On the other end, my son was hysterically crying. He was just held at gunpoint by the police just feet away from his university’s entrance gates. I was furious, but I was also glad he survived.

He followed the instructions I gave him in the fourth grade. He listened. He complied. He was polite. But when the cop asked if he had any weapons on him, he said he had a pocket knife that I gave him. Before he went to college, I told him if he left campus, make sure he carried protection. As he went to reach in his pocket, the guns were drawn on him and his friends. Why was he stopped? He did a slow roll through a red light.

It took months of back-and-forth to view the dash-cam footage from my son’s incident, I even spoke about it with the Richmond Times-Dispatch in 2018. But last year, when I heard George Floyd cry for his mom, it reminded me of my own son. During that frantic phone call, all I could hear him say was “I just wanted to cry and ask to call you, but I didn’t want to give them the benefit of seeing me cry.” He held on to those tears until he called me.

My son made it home safe, but George Floyd did not. But thankfully, 17-year-old Darnella Frazier caught his death on camera for the world to see. That video has been viewed millions of times and it was another Black death at the hands of someone who is supposed to protect and serve. And those “good” cops? Well, they stood back and watched.

On Tuesday I woke up with a knot in my stomach because I had a feeling the verdict was going to be handed down. I can’t remember how many times as a journalist I’ve covered these types of trials, and cried at the fact that another cop was able to walk out of the courtroom with his head held up high. There wasn’t any justice. There wasn’t any peace. To say I have faith in the justice system would be a prodigious overstatement. I waited on pins and needles. I had friends who told me there were in tears all afternoon leading up to the verdict. All I could do was hope for the best. In this case, the “best” was a guilty verdict on all three counts. Derek Chauvin will now await his sentence and in eight weeks, he’ll have that handed down on him.

It’s been three years since my son had his run-in with the police, and now that we currently live on different coasts, I pray every night that I never receive another phone call like the one during his freshman year in college. Although I know this won’t be the last death of a Black person at the hands of the police, I hope this verdict sparks much-needed change and peace for Floyd’s family.

Yesha Callahan is an award-winning journalist and TV writer currently living in Los Angeles.

Derek Chauvin, the Minneapolis police officer who has been on trial for the death of George Floyd was found guilty of murder on Tuesday. Chauvin was charged with three counts: unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. He was found guilty on all three counts. 

The whole world watched the horrific May 25 footage of Chauvin kneeling on George Floyd’s neck for nine minutes. The deeply emotional three-week trial included testimony from Darnella Frazier, the teenage girl whose cellphone footage served as central evidence for the prosecution. 

The trial concluded on Monday and the jury deliberated for 10 hours over two days. On Tuesday just after 4 pm eastern time, the guilty verdict was announced. Chauvin has not yet been sentenced. The New York Times reports that Chauvin could serve anywhere between 12.5 years and decades of prison time. 

Coverage of Floyd’s murder has been constant for nearly a year. In the summer, streets throughout the country filled with protestors marching against police violence, in Floyd’s name as well as the names of other Black Americans killed by police officers, including Breonna Taylor. For many anti-racist and anti-police brutality activists, a guilty verdict is a relief, but it does not mean that justice has been served. Floyd left behind a family, including his girlfriend, Courteney Ross, and his seven-year-old daughter, Gianna Floyd. The climactic trial drew attention to Floyd’s killing, but it did not change police practices, and it did not bring back George Floyd. 

On social media, many wrote with great emotion about the pain that accompanies even a guilty verdict. 

While millions mourned George Floyd anew, they also valorized Frazier, who was only 17-years-old and on a walk to the store with her younger cousin when she took out her phone and filmed Chauvin killing Floyd. Frazier has spoken about the horror of witnessing the event, and her wish that she, a child, had intervened and somehow stopped Chauvin. 

The bracingly clear video footage of Chauvin killing Floyd sparked protests throughout Minneapolis, every major city in America, and in countries across the world. In anticipation of the verdict, some states’ leadership have called in troops from the National Guard, as well as state troopers, in case of unrest. Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota declared a “peacetime emergency.”

Immediately following the verdict, cheers were heard in some cities. 

Jenny Singer is a staff writer for Glamour. You can follow her on Twitter. 

Evan Manivong is making a name for himself in the world of college gymnastics—not just for his athleticism but also for his cleverness when it comes to advocating for people to get the COVID-19 vaccine. A video recently resurfaced of the University of Illinois sophomore sticking his vault routine and tying his career-high score at a meet last month. He then took a moment to take out his vaccine card from his leotard to show the crowd.

“Sign me up for one of those cards,” an announcer joked after watching Manivong’s routine. “That was amazing.” 

Manivong tweeted, “It’s my vaccination card… go get vaccinated everyone!”

Manivong was recently named a College Gymnastics Association regular-season All-American on the vault for “holding a national qualifying average of 14.717, good for sixth in the country.” The fact that he’s using his spotlight to encourage others to receive the COVID-19 vaccine is being met with lots of online support.

Currently, the Moderna, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are authorized by the FDA for use. “Vaccinated people do not carry the virus, don’t get sick, and that is not just in the clinical trials but it’s also in real-world data,” CDC director Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky explained on The Rachel Maddow Show on March 29, 2021. That data came from a CDC study of about 4,000 essential workers who received either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines. The people in the study were vaccinated and tested for coronavirus every week for 13 weeks while taking part in daily life in the United States.

Last month, President Joe Biden announced an update on when Americans will be able to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

President Biden said, “About three weeks ago, we were able to say that we’ll have enough vaccine supply for adults by the end of July, and I’m pleased to announce today, as a consequence of this stepped-up process that I’ve ordered and just outlined, this country will have enough vaccine supply…for every adult in America by the end of May.”

In fact, in the United States, which has the highest rate of incarceration in the world, the Constitution states that slavery is legal in prisons. It’s not something high school history teachers tend to dwell on. But it’s the reason you see those shocking, seemingly “un-American” headlines, like last summer, when crews of prison inmates who are paid under $6 per hour to fight fires in California were depleted, because prisons were overrun with coronavirus. The 13th Amendment reads, “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States.” It feels un-American, but it’s right there in our founding documents.

Prisons and jails around the country have become petri dishes in which incarcerated people are suffering penalties far beyond just captivity. As of March 23, almost 400,000 people in prisons had tested positive for COVID, according to The Marshall Project, which has been tracking the disease in prisons since March. 

Glamour spoke to the women leading the Gasping for Justice campaign about their work defending one of the most marginalized groups of people in the country—work that’s punishing and distinctly unglamorous. They told us why the people in Prince George’s County Jail need us, badly, to be their voice.

Glamour: How do you find the will to do this hard, distressing work? 

Olevia Boykin, attorney at Civil Rights Corps: We are in a pivotal point in a historic movement around the country. I think people are starting to see that all Black lives matter, and that includes incarcerated ones. We started Gasping for Justice to share these stories with the world, to shine a light on the crisis happening in this jail, and in jails across the country.

Fiona Apple: If you’ve suffered, you can be empathetic. And when you’re empathetic, it’s impossible to turn away. To be very honest, I think that the things that have happened in my life with sexual assault, sexual abuse, psychological abuse, financial abuse—all these kinds of abuses by men, and some things that I am not allowed to talk about and some things that I have to lie about—it puts this anger in me that I can’t save myself. I couldn’t save myself but maybe helping or trying to help somebody else feels as close to saving yourself as you can ever get. Because if you can help them, it does make you feel better, even if it’s not your issue that was solved, it heals you. And I would presume to say that lots of other women probably come from a similar place, that you’ve experienced a lot, and you just don’t want to let bad things happen to other people. It brings a lot up when you see other people being ignored or people being disbelieved.

Why is this group of incarcerated people suing?

Katie Chamblee-Ryan, attorney at Civil Rights Corps: The vast majority of people in the jail are pretrial, so they have not been convicted of anything, they are legally innocent, and they have pending charges. For the majority of the pandemic, the jail has locked people down 23 hours a day—these are solitary confinement conditions. They get one hour out of their cell, some get even less. The hour could be in the middle of the night, and it is your only time when you can call your family, and your lawyer, and shower, and spend any time outside, and it’s the only time anyone will give you any cleaning materials to clean. This violates the Constitution. [A representative for the jail told Glamour: “During the peak of the pandemic, detainees received an hour of recreation time that rotated each day.”]