Nearly 40 people, including residents, prison justice advocates and lawmakers, gathered Wednesday at the Bell Tower at the Virginia State Capitol to denounce conditions at Red Onion State Prison and demand accountability and reform.

The cold air did little to deter the assembled group, which included activists, Virginia Defenders members, and Delegates Michael Jones and Holly Seibold. Speeches from organizers were shared alongside statements and quotes from those inside the facility, with stories of the conditions inmates face spurring chants of “Shut it down!”

“No one wants to be in those conditions, and the men there don’t want to,” Jones said. “We need to find a way to get them out.”

The rally was the latest response to efforts by inmates to secure transfers out of Red Onion and spotlight the harsh treatment and conditions at the prison, including a hunger strike and incidents last year where six inmates set themselves on fire.

A rally organizer read quotes from Ekong Eshiet, a 28-year-old Black man held at Red Onion, who says he has faced racial and religious harassment and discrimination.

“If I have to, I don’t mind setting myself on fire again,” he said, according to the statement. “And this time, I’ll set my whole body on fire before I have to stay up here and do the rest of my time up here. I would rather die before I stay up here.”

The incidents of self-immolation and inmate statements highlighted by the Virginia Defenders last year sparked reporting, nationwide attention and increased scrutiny of Red Onion’s operations.

In response, Virginia Department of Corrections Director Chadwick Dotson questioned the credibility of the allegations and the mental health of the inmates, inviting members of the General Assembly to visit the prison and assess the conditions firsthand.

“The recent round of stories about Red Onion are nothing more than bad-faith efforts to try to score cheap political points by advocacy groups who pursue prison abolition and policies that would make Virginians less safe,” Dotson said in a statement. “Virginia needs secure facilities in which to house the Commonwealth’s most violent offenders, and Red Onion State Prison serves that purpose.”

For Seibold, who visited Red Onion before the burnings, and Jones, who visited afterward, their experiences underscored the urgent need for action. Both pointed to issues at Red Onion and similar facilities, including the widespread use of solitary confinement, roaming guard dogs, a heavy reliance on local residents for staffing and a lack of rehabilitation programs.

“Will they be equipped to reintegrate as healthy contributing members of society,” Seibold asked, “or are they going to return more damaged and disconnected than before and then just return back to prison?”

Seibold is introducing a bill to regulate prison temperatures for livable conditions, while Jones plans legislation limiting how far inmates can be incarcerated from home, among other measures.

Andrea Sapone, the state’s new corrections ombudsman, has stated that her office will prioritize an investigation into Red Onion and the allegations against the facility once it is fully staffed. 

Phil Wilayto of the Virginia Defenders emphasized that sustained mass organizing is essential for driving meaningful change in prison operations.

“You are here on a cold day when you could be out getting water,” Wilayto said. “But you are here because you care. That’s what we need to do.”