Today is Willie Manning’s 55^th birthday. We wish him a happy and peaceful day.

This birthday will be Willie’s first one spent under a new regime of greater freedom: since March, Willie has been allowed to go outside his cell without an escort during the day. He has even been able to play a little basketball and football with some of the other prisoners, with his unaccustomed muscles aching at first! He can also walk freely in the yard outside, and can sit in the shade and watch the birds. Here he can sometimes find peace.

As well as having greater freedom to move around, Willie has benefitted from improvements in the provision of medical treatment: he can access a doctor or dentist more easily than before.

These welcome improvements in conditions have occurred following the terrible period of early 2020: after violence in other parts of the prison death row was locked down, with toilets malfunctioning and access to food and water restricted.

During that time, lawsuits were filed by rappers Jay-Z and Yo Gotti on behalf of prisoners at Parchman (Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman). Since then, the Mississippi Department of Corrections has been obliged to provide regular updates on the improvements that it is making at the prison. The lawsuits were dropped earlier this year, in recognition of these improvements.

It is reassuring to know that the rappers’ legal team continues to monitor the situation. As Yo Gotti remarked:
“The Mississippi Department of Corrections has neglected these torturous living conditions for decades, so we will continue to hold them accountable and ensure they commit to creating long-lasting change that safely protects their incarcerated population.”

We hope that Willie is reassured by this. And we sincerely hope he enjoys his birthday.