Dear John,
As soon as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Black women knew our incarcerated
loved ones’ lives were on the line.
Our members’ stories of having an incarcerated loved one during a pandemic
needed to be told. Keshia's brother has all of the symptoms of COVID-19
but has been refused a test by Arkansas prison officials. Ms. Anita’s son
was just hospitalized for a heart condition making him more vulnerable to
COVID-19 complications while he is held pretrial in a California jail.
Char is 8 months pregnant and is now at home with her three children,
without access to her husband’s support through family visits. As she
anxiously waits out the next four months before his release, each day that
he remains incarcerated puts his life at greater risk.
This is why Color of Change and Essie Justice Group^1 have joined forces
-- the fight for our loved ones lives inside is urgent.
[ [link removed] ][IMG]
COVID-19 is rapidly spreading inside prisons, jails, and detention centers
across the nation.^2 Our loved ones are telling us that there are no
sanitation supplies, even in the medical facilities; that they have no
soap, no masks, and no ability to socially distance. Despite the imminent
danger that our incarcerated loved ones face in getting COVID-19, millions
of people remain behind bars across the country. Our loved ones are being
left to die.
These dire conditions did not begin with, nor will they end with COVID-19.
This pandemic magnifies the devastation of the carceral system and sheds
light on how prisons, jails, and detention centers have never kept our
communities safe and well.
Studies confirm that the virus is disproportionately killing Black people
and financially devastating Black women.^3,4 But we have almost no
reliable source of information about what is happening to Black people
held in cages across this country. We know we cannot trust the facilities
where our loved ones are held to accurately report on the conditions
inside. Prisons, jails, and detention centers are underreporting the
number of confirmed cases and have no incentive to test.
[ [link removed] ]We need to do this together—we are collecting 1000 surveys from people
with loved ones behind bars to find out what’s really going on inside
prisons, jails, and detention centers across the United States.
We’ve launched the [ [link removed] ]Lives On The Line Campaign to fight for the lives of
our loved ones inside. With the data from the survey, we’ll have the power
we need to hold our public officials accountable for decisions they are
making every day that put our loved ones’ lives on the line.
We need you to act now. Here are two ways to join the fight to bring our
loved ones home:
1. [ [link removed] ]Take and share this survey about how COVID-19 is impacting you and
your loved ones inside.
2. Read our demands for prison, jail, and detention center closures, and
more [ [link removed] ]here.
Until justice is real,
Gina Clayton-Johnson, Essie Justice Group and Clarise McCants, Color of
Change
References:
1. Essie Justice Group is a powerful organization of women with
incarcerated loved ones. Visit [ [link removed] ]essiejusticegroup.org for more
information.
2. "'A Ticking Time Bomb:’" Advocates Warn COVID-19 is Spreading Rapidly
Behind Bars.” National Public
Radio. [ [link removed] ][link removed]
3. “COVID-19 Has Infected and Killed Black People At Alarming Rates. This
Data Proves It.” Mother Jones.
[ [link removed] ][link removed]
4. “The Economic Devastation Of COVID-19 Is Hitting Women Particularly
Hard.” Huffington Post.
[ [link removed] ][link removed]
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[ [link removed] ]Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black
folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. [ [link removed] ]Help
keep our movement strong.
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