Earlier this week, tens of thousands of California inmates began refusing meals in an apparent hunger strike.
The 29,000 inmates still participating in the strike are demanding better conditions in the state’s often criticized prison facilities.
Their demands include more frequent cleaning and maintenance of prison facilities, access to the law library, and prisoners say they want a five-year limit on solitary confinement.
Los Angeles Times reporter Paige St. John has been following the story from Sacramento. She joins us on The Takeaway to explain the context for these hunger strikes, and the current situation in California prisons.
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