Several months back, I was commissioned by the SPLC to make some portraits of 22 yr. old, Hakeem Drane, who had been held in solitary confinement in a Florida prison and was recently released.

As reported by the Southern Poverty Law Center

“During the afternoon of Sept. 5, 2018, Hakeem Drane was asleep in his disciplinary confinement cell at Lake Correctional Institution – one of the few ways to pass the time in confinement. But the 22-year-old would be stirred from his sleep by correctional officers who had arrived at his cell to take him to see the nurse. What happened next, Hakeem said, would leave him with injuries that would require surgery and lingering psychological effects – an experience that illustrates how people, particularly young people, are vulnerable in confinement. As Hakeem shook off his sleep, he was handcuffed and shackled by the officers. He hadn’t even asked to see the nurse, but he didn’t feel he had a choice in the matter. Then, he said officers pushed him to the ground and kicked his face until he blacked out. He denies doing anything to provoke the alleged attack, which he said left him hospitalized with injuries to his head, nose, and jaw. ”

Read more of the report on solitary confinement, here- https://www.splcenter.org/sites/default/files/com_solitary_confinement_0.pdf

SPLC Report Written & Edited by Brad Bennett, Jamie Kizzire and Will Tucker

Photography Coordinator: Angela Greer

Photography: Sonya Revell