Prison cells in the United States are usually 70 sq ft and include running water, but generally speaking prisons in the US don't have private cells and its a barrack type situation, so generally amenities like showers, toilets, kitchens, yards, all of that is shared. If you were to look at the military its common for beds to be shared on ships and submarines due to space restrictions.

What I'm getting at is "what is the absolute minimum of personal space that should be considered a human right?" Is it none and we should try to promote communal living spaces or is there an actual number for how much sq ft is a human right? Should everyone have a private toilet/shower/fridge/stove/television/ect?

Is there a line to be drawn on this issue or should no line be drawn? Is personal space something we should be measuring objectively or subjectively?

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  • berrytopylus [she/her,they/them]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Worries about personal space aren't particularly that important right now as long as it's not people living out in the suburbs with huge yards and expecting the same treats they'll get in more dense areas. Cities can build up quite a bit and smart design helps mitigate the issue of larger housing putting distance between things in dense neighborhoods.

    Ships and submarines have a pretty small size limiter on them, especially when they're carrying a whole lot of other shit onboard, and prison cells can only get away with being so small because nobody in power gives a shit about prisoners.