“I don't think it is appropriate to dehumanize people for entertainment and film people in what could be the lowest period of their lives."
Netflix is airing a three-part reality show capturing the women’s side of the jail, all shot with permission of Sheriff Marlin Gusman.
“How do you have time and energy and space to turn the jail into a circus?” asked inmate advocate Bruce Reilly, deputy director of Voice of the Experienced.
Two weeks ago, Netflix began airing the show, called "Jailbirds." It shows female inmates inside the Orleans Justice Center sharing drugs, romance, even conversations with male inmates through the plumbing system.
“They're exploiting your pain. They're exploiting your misery. They're laughing at your accent. They're laughing at your stories of woe,” said Reilly, just one of many activists criticizing Gusman's decision to allow the production to take place.
