Kim Kardashian has spoken out in support of Southern California prison inmates who have joined the fight against devastating wildfires.
The reality star and criminal justice activist, 44, released a statement on her Instagram Stories on Saturday calling for a pay increase for incarcerated LA firefighters.
“I've spent the past week watching my city burn, and I've seen and talked to so many firefighters working all night long to save our community. ” she began her message.
“All five fires in Los Angeles have hundreds of firefighters in jail, risking their lives to save us,” Kardashian continued. “They work 24-hour shifts at Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire in Pasadena.”
The “American Horror Story” actress said inmates “were paid next to nothing and risked their lives to prove to the community that they had changed and were now first responders.” , some died.”
“I consider them heroes,” she added.
According to BBCMore than 1,000 incarcerated men and women are helping fight the Los Angeles fires. They wear prison orange jumpsuits and work at the site alongside California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) personnel.
Kardashian's statement continued: “Incarcerated firefighters are paid $1 an hour for risking their lives, a salary that has remained unchanged since 1984 and has not been increased due to inflation. Never happened,” he continued. Even when the fire worsened and many people died, it was never raised. ”
“There was an agreement this year to raise wages for incarcerated firefighters to $5 an hour, but it was scrapped at the last minute,” she explained.
The mother of four called on Gov. Gavin Newsom to “do what no governor has been able to do in the last 40 years and risk his life to protect our lives and our homes. “We want to raise the salaries of incarcerated firefighters to a level that shows respect for the people who live in prison.”
“And finally, I want to thank the @calfire Ventura Training Center firefighters who saved my community when the fires started this week.” added Kardashian, who had to evacuate her Hidden Hills home.
“These are all formerly incarcerated firefighters who want to come back and continue serving their communities as firefighters,” Kardashian said.
“Thanks to the bill passed by the @antirecidivismcoalition, these guys can now have their sentences commuted and their felonies expunged from their fire records. And when they get home, they can earn six figures to work in the fire department. You can get a job,” she concluded.
According to CBS Newsincarcerated firefighters volunteer with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's Conservation Fire Camp program.
Inmates are specifically tasked with clearing vegetation to cut off fire lines and extracting fuel from behind buildings to slow fires. Campers can also take on support roles such as cooking, laundry, and running water treatment plants.
Wildfires in Los Angeles began spreading across the county on Tuesday. Five days later, at least 16 people have died and more than 200,000 people have been forced to evacuate.
At least 39,000 acres of land were burned. Its area is approximately 2.5 times the size of Manhattan.
