Over 120,000 people have died in the US because of #COVID19 & people in the criminal justice system are especially at risk. Incarcerated people can’t live/eat/exercise in safety. They don’t have access to necessary hygiene & cleaning supplies, & lack basic medical care.
America’s system of mass incarceration makes us all less safe, especially during a pandemic. Jails and prisons are never safe places but the #coronavirus pandemic heightens the risk because social distancing is impossible. #COVID19
The number of incarcerated people known to be infected has doubled this past month. More than 68,000 incarcerated people have tested positive and over 500 have died from the virus. #COVID19#coronavirus
See the faces and read the stories of people who have #COVID19 behind bars, have passed away, are still fighting to go home, and are navigating the criminal justice system in the community during this pandemic. #FreeAndSafe#coronavirusFWD.us/FreeAndSafe
Chalana feels “unspeakably grateful” to have left prison early without contracting #COVID19. Chalana was one of a very few people in federal prison who were granted an early release due to #coronavirus concerns. floridaphoenix.com/2020/06/12/inm…
Chalana has medical conditions, including asthma, high blood pressure, and sickle-cell disease. She left prison, met by her now adult daughter, who was four when she first went to prison, and her parents who raised her daughter. #FreeAndSafe
Chalana said, “Not as many are getting out [of federal prison as they should be]. But the Bureau of Prisons is a big machine that doesn’t adapt easily.” She added that more attention should be paid to early release for people incarcerated during the #COVID19 pandemic.
Keighan, 24 years old, was denied early release after pleading with government officials that he wanted to be with his two children if his grandparents got sick with #COVID19. Keighan said he feels “completely without options.” bangordailynews.com/2020/06/08/mai…
Keighan said he’s worried that his children, age six and four, will be left without a caretaker if either of his grandparents with underlying conditions tests positive for #COVID19.
“My children don’t have anyone else."
Keighan is set to be released in June and requested early release in March amid the #coronavirus crisis. He also said prison staff are not following social distancing rules, "it just astonishes me that they’re outright denying people the right to stay safe." #FreeAndSafe
Beth was told that her pregnant daughter would be released early, but later learned she wasn’t coming home early. Beth’s daughter, Michele, is serving a five-month sentence and is currently eight months pregnant. northcarolinahealthnews.org/2020/06/17/pre…
In late April, Beth said she received a phone call from a Carteret County probation officer stating that her daughter was to be released. That same night, Michele called Beth to tell she wasn’t going to be released because of a mistake by the probation officer.
The last time Debra spoke to her brother, John, a nurse held the phone for him as he was lying in a hospital bed on a ventilator. John was diagnosed with #COVID19 and had been on life support after getting sick at a correctional facility in Michigan. freep.com/story/news/loc…
Debra said she encouraged her brother to keep fighting. "I was still hopeful," she said. "I had spoken with one of his doctors, and they were looking for the plasma antibodies for him." Two days later, John died from #coronavirus.
He had been incarcerated for nearly 40 years.
This tool aggregates stories of individuals impacted by the criminal justice system during #coronavirus. People should be #FreeAndSafe.
Dreamers, #TPS holders, and farmworkers have never stopped fighting for their futures — and that’s why TODAY, the House will vote on #HR6 and the #FarmWorkforceModernizationAct. Across the country, there is strong bipartisan support for a path to citizenship. #WeAreHome
New national polling from @CenterForwardUS released TODAY finds voters are eager for congressional action and there is broad bipartisan support for protection from deportation and a path to citizenship for Dreamers, #TPS holders and undocumented farmworkers w/ over 80% support.
.@coalition_dream, a group of +100 of the nation’s top businesses & trade assns, endorsed #HR6 and said continued inaction "will cause significant negative economic and social impact on businesses and hundreds of thousands of deserving young people across the country.” #WeAreHome
.@FWDus New York State Director of Criminal Justice Reform @rodnationn issued the following statement today after Governor Cuomo delivered his 2021 State of the State address: fwd.us/news/fwd-us-ur…
"Since December 1, more #COVID19 cases have swept through New York prisons than in the whole first nine months of the pandemic combined – and tragically, 10 more incarcerated people have died." — @rodnationn
"Public health experts and advocates have long predicted that the state’s failure to reduce our incarcerated population would cost lives and hurt families. Nearly ten months into the #COVID19 crisis, far too little has been done to keep incarcerated people safe." — @rodnationn
Happening now: Advocating joining CA Senator @AlexPadilla4CA and Rep. @JoaquinCastrotx, on a press call to call for undocumented immigrants who risk their lives as essential workers to be fast-tracked for citizenship. Follow this thread for updates. #WeAreHome
"We must find permanent protections for the 11 million undocumented immigrants living, working, and contributing to our country. We must keep essential workers safe and recognize their role in keeping us safe through the pandemic." — @AlexPadilla4CA#WeAreHome
"The Biden Administration and Congress must work together to guarantee that undocumented essential workers and their families are included in our nation's economic recovery. These people deliver for us — now, we should deliver for them." — @JoaquinCastrotx#WeAreHome
Despite facing their own uncertain futures, more than 5 million undocumented essential workers are combatting the pandemic & protecting all of our lives.
A path to citizenship is critical to America’s recovery and must be included in #COVID19 recovery efforts. #WeAreHome
Meet Esmeralda, an essential worker raising a three-year-old daughter. "The pathway to citizenship for me & others like me is the same pathway that will lead us all through America's recovery."
We must restore opportunity and dignity for all people living in the U.S. #WeAreHome
Jesus, a #DACA recipient & Houston paramedic, spent 6 days rescuing people from Hurricane Harvey and now, he is on the frontlines of the #COVID19 pandemic.
“Our families are working hard to keep this country moving forward during the pandemic." #WeAreHome#ForOurFamilies
In recent weeks, @FWDus state directors have called on the new Congress & President-elect Biden to create a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented people, including over 5 million of whom are helping combat the #COVID19 pandemic. #WeAreHome#ForOurFamilies
Colorado State Director @MarisitaMo: "It’s time to turn the page on the cruelty of the Trump Administration. It’s time to deliver a permanent solution for undocumented immigrants and fair and humane immigration and refugee policies." #WeAreHome
FWD.us is releasing a new report, "Dismantling #DACA & Terminating #TPS: A Moral and Economic Disaster That Hurts All Americans" which highlights the devastating human economic & political consequences of Pres Trump's anti-immigrant agenda bit.ly/3j93DB7
The new report is the first in a four-part series, which will detail voters’ overwhelming rejection of these policies.
Broad public support for DACA recipients and TPS holders has been galvanized by the courageous advocacy of the people most severely impacted by these policies.
Numerous national polls have made clear that Americans of all backgrounds - including President Trump’s own supporters - are strongly supportive of immigrants and immigration, and even more so now than when he took office.