History

In April 2014, social worker Mary Buser, formerly an assistant mental health chief on Rikers Island, wrote an Op-ed in The Washington Post, entitled “Solitary's Mockery of Human Rights” which exposed the horror of solitary confinement on Rikers Island. Spurred on by the Op-ed, retired social worker Moya Atkinson brought social workers and allies from around the world together to form Social Workers & Allies Against Solitary Confinement (SWASC).