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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  • invalidusernamelol [he/him]
    ·
    edit-2
    2 years ago

    I think that number should be around the average square footage of a one bedroom apartment, 600-750sqft.

    If we're just talking bedroom, then yeah half that is good. The other half is for kitchen, living, storage, and bathroom space.

    But really, 900-1000 is the most livable with the ability to have a utility/office space in your living quarters as an individual.

    Oh, so current housing stock is around 235Bsqft in the US. So if it was distributed equally, that would be almost exactly 700sqft person. So I think 600 is a good low end honestly. That allows for about 15% of the housing stock to be allocated as excess for say family situations, disability, or as a reward for higher labor grades (if that's a path that is decided on).

    If we're looking at this through a capitalist system of allocation, then it seems like the concession is 300sqft