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 Group¹ have joined forces --  the fight for our loved ones lives inside is urgent.

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. 

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 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. 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 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 essiejusticegroup.org for more information.

2. "'A Ticking Time Bomb:’" Advocates Warn COVID-19 is Spreading Rapidly Behind Bars.” National Public Radio. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/245830?t=10&akid=42611%2E4731121%2Ej-3TxL

3.  “COVID-19 Has Infected and Killed Black People At Alarming Rates. This Data Proves It.” Mother Jones. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/245831?t=12&akid=42611%2E4731121%2Ej-3TxL

4. “The Economic Devastation Of COVID-19 Is Hitting Women Particularly Hard.” Huffington Post. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/245832?t=14&akid=42611%2E4731121%2Ej-3TxL