As we reported last week, prison rape is no joke.

The current issue of The Nation carries Silja J.A. Talvi's moving article Prison's Shameful Secret, that begins with the experience of Roderick Johnson, a 33-year-old African-American Navy veteran from a small town in rural Texas.

Johnson "didn't ask for it. Prison did it to him, and his life will never be the same. While serving time for a nonviolent offense, Johnson endured the equivalent of sexual slavery at the hands of prison gangs...."

" For men, rape and sexual abuse in prison is now so commonplace that according to a recent study, one in four male prisoners in state and federal facilities experience pressured or forced sexual contact. "

"A bright spot in this otherwise dismal situation is the recent introduction of the Prison Rape Reduction Act of 2002, co-sponsored by Senators Ted Kennedy and Jeff Sessions, and Reps. Bobby Scott and Frank Wolf."

Here is our July, 2002 description of the this important and necessary legislation.