Gay real prison
Cooma 'gay prison' podcasters call for government apology for entrapment, persecution of homosexual men
It is a shameful secret buried in history — how from to the s, Cooma jail in the New South Wales Snowy Mountains operated as a "gay prison", possibly the only facility of its kind in the world.
Key points:
- A number of recent leads have opened up since the release of The Greatest Menace, detailing Cooma's dedicated "gay prison"
- This week a former inmate spoke about his experience there for the first time
- NSW's Special Commission of Inquiry into LGBTIQ Hate Crimes is due to hand down its report in June
The intention was to isolate men convicted of queer offences as part of a covert government experiment to develop techniques to "cure" homosexuality.
The 8-episode podcast The Greatest Menace was released in February last year, unearthing details of the reopening of the Cooma facility as a dedicated gay prison, the use of police entrapment, and the launch of a state inquiry into the causes and treatments of homosexuality
Gay men in prison
Being convicted of a crime and spending time behind bars is never going to be uncomplicated. It is not intended to be. However it is important to be aware of the additional risks of being a lgbtq+ prisoner, and what is in place to support and protect you.
Homophobia still exists in UK prisons. Whether this takes the build of verbal or physical abuse, the Prison System has a duty under the Equality Execute to ensure that you are not discriminated against in relation to your sexual orientation.
Whilst not illegal, prison-specific rules can outlaw sexual activity between prisoners. Despite this, many prisoners continue to have sex discreetly. This can range from consensual relationships, being intimidated/coerced into sex acts by other prisoners, to serious cases of sexual assault and non-consensual sex. Often the latter can be in relation to prison ‘debt’, for example as a result of trading cigarettes or drugs.
There are higher rates of STIs and HIV within prisons. Access to condoms can be tricky; prison healthcare services have a legal duty to provide these to you if you are
This article was published in collaboration with Vice.
“Hey slut!” he yelled at me, laughing with his partner. “What? You know you’re a slut!”
I stopped and turned to face the two corrections officers who were pointing at me. I smiled and waved before proceeding to amble into the dining hall.
I put up with this type of behavior from the Michigan Department of Corrections staff constantly. It’s something I expected from other prisoners, but the harassment from the officers is actually much more severe.
In the past, I might have reacted in anger, but that’s exactly what they’re looking for. Outbursts will only devastate my chance of getting parole.
Back when I was locked in a double-bunk cell in level-four security at Chippewa Correctional Facility, a young gang member moved in with me. When he entered the room, he informed me that the officers had said to him, “Your bunkie’s a freak! He’s down for whatever!” They had laughed at him in front of the other inmates.
So he told me, “I’m not locking with no fag. You have to tell them to move ya or I’m going to defeat your ass.”
When t
When I first came to prison, I didn’t recognize how I should execute. I was a queer man, convicted of a sex crime. We’ve all heard the horror stories. But I had one thing going for me: I was big, weighing in at pounds, a fair amount of which was muscle. For the most part, other inmates left me alone.
That is, until the other gays and trans found out about me. At the time, one of the gangs, which called themselves the Aryan Knights, used “beating up fags and chomos (child molesters)” as an initiation for recent members. Like I said, they pretty much avoided me—preferring to go after the smaller and weaker. But that meant that a number of lgbtq+ men and transgender women suddenly wanted to be my boyfriend (or girlfriend), not because they liked me in that way, but because they figured I’d protect them.
For a while, I went along with it. At one point I was the “boyfriend” of six distinct people at the equal time. But I drained of being used, and wanted real companionship, so I eventually started hanging out with just one cute little guy who seemed to have sincere affection for me. I was devastated wh