{"id":376,"date":"2020-07-10T21:49:18","date_gmt":"2020-07-10T21:49:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.covchurch.org\/lovemercydojustice\/?p=376"},"modified":"2020-07-10T21:49:18","modified_gmt":"2020-07-10T21:49:18","slug":"freedom-to-social-distance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blogs.covchurch.org\/lovemercydojustice\/2020\/07\/10\/freedom-to-social-distance\/","title":{"rendered":"Freedom to Social Distance"},"content":{"rendered":"
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As we celebrated our nation’s Independence Day this past week, we were reminded of the freedom we have as Americans and what it took (and continues to take) to secure that freedom. Today we want to spotlight a freedom we may not even realize we have.<\/p>\n

Have you ever considered the\u00a0freedom\u00a0<\/em>you have to socially distance, quarantine, or wash your hands regularly? Have you thought about your free access to testing? Those who are incarcerated aren\u2019t granted the same freedoms \u2013 simple freedoms which can prevent the spread of COVID-19.<\/p>\n

COVID-19 awaits no background check and requires no gate pass. Its life is sustained through shakedowns and handshakes, the passing of styrofoam trays, tight quarters, and close proximity. It is as inclusive as it is intrusive. It makes a place, usually protected from inside and outside harm, like Stateville Correctional Center outside of Chicago, one of the deadliest places to be in the midst of a global pandemic.<\/p>\n

At the time of this writing, the Illinois Department of Health confirmed\u00a0282 cases<\/a>\u00a0and 16 deaths of COVID-19 between staff and incarcerated people at Stateville, the facility where\u00a0North Park Theological Seminary<\/a>\u00a0offers certificate courses and a master\u2019s degree to over 80 inside and outside students.\u00a0Two of those deaths<\/a>\u00a0includes a first and second-year student of North Park\u2019s master\u2019s program. A cellhouse that was shut down in 2016 because of health and safety concerns was even\u00a0reopened<\/a>\u00a0to house COVID patients. With an inability to socially distance, little-to-no access to soap and hand sanitizer, and under-resourced medical support, residents and staff at Stateville and correctional centers across the nation are left wondering not \u201cif\u201d but \u201cwhen\u201d the virus will reach them and what will be the damage.<\/p>\n

How can we respond as the Evangelical Covenant Church? How do we lament broken systems that see little value in our sisters and brothers who are incarcerated? What can we do when we feel helpless? Hebrews 13:3 calls us to \u201ccontinue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you were suffering.\u201d<\/p>\n

We can remember our brothers at Stateville, and those incarcerated and working inside institutions around the US, by praying and engaging in the following ways:<\/p>\n

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  1. Pray<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n