By Sara Burback
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we value our connection with our family and close friends as a lifeline of support, encouragement, and affirmation. But what if we were isolated from even those connections? For young men and women under the age of 18 currently serving sentences in juvenile detention centers across the United States, they and their families are experiencing this shared strain of separation during this unprecedented time of uncertainty. They are restricted from this contact that, for so many of us, has been a source of life.
For young men and women in juvenile detention in the midst of a pandemic, there is an acute emotional weight of experiencing the pandemic in isolation from their families and communities back home. “That in and of itself puts a tremendous amount of hardship on their mental health,” says Hernan Carvente Martinez, the National Youth Partnership Strategist for the Youth First Initiative, a nonprofit dedicated to closing youth prisons and investing in community-based supports. Martinez himself was incarcerated at a detention center when he was young. “There is a fear that you’re going to be caught by the crisis and then ultimately have to deal with it while being away from your family and everyone you love,” he said.
By now, it is well known that those living in close, confined quarters are more susceptible to exposure to COVID-19. Preventative actions such as hand washing, wearing masks, and social distancing are a privilege often not afforded to teens in overcrowded detention centers, which greatly increases the chances of a positive case quickly spreading among a population that is comprised of minors who disproportionately carry more health problems and have underlying conditions, such as drug addiction and H.I.V. According to The Sentencing Project, which provides daily updates, as of May 19, there were 463 positive cases among juveniles and 534 among detention center staff, with a continued increase of positive cases in both groups. So far, New Jersey is the leading state that has announced testing for every young adult in detention centers.
At this time when our country and the wider global community share the same goal of protecting the citizens from COVID-19, especially the most vulnerable among us, it is critical that we extend that same consideration to juveniles in detention centers. How can our communities support parents, grandparents, and siblings that ache to visit their family members in detention right now and are concerned for their safety? How can we show compassion towards these juveniles and their families?
The Role of Government and Civil Society
Government, of course, has a responsibility to both legislate and enforce public laws for the safety of the community. The juvenile justice system is responsible for holding young adults accountable for violations of the law. At the same time, government also has responsibility to safeguard the health and well-being of youth under its supervision in juvenile detention facilities.
“This is the time for juvenile justice agencies to scrutinize every detention and placement decision and to review - if not reconsider - every policy that leans towards confinement,” said Nate Balis, Director of the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Juvenile Justice Strategy Group.
As Balis indicates, especially during the pandemic, correctional leaders should consider community-based alternatives to confinement where appropriate. The majority of young people in detention are there for nonviolent crimes, and juvenile detention agencies should allow youth who can safely serve their time in a more supportive home community to do so.
A number of counties in California, for example, have already reduced the number of juveniles in detention by releasing those who have committed nonviolent or low-level offenses, or have release dates within the next 45 days. Lowering the population helps detention centers maintain social distancing.
“For young men and women in juvenile detention in the midst of a pandemic, there is an acute emotional weight of experiencing the pandemic in isolation from their families and communities... ”
In an effort to support the emotional, social, and spiritual health of young people in detention and their families, juvenile justice agencies should also create more opportunities for families to connect via phone or video conference until restrictions on visitors are lifted.
In Utah, for example, the adult correctional system was equipped for video chats, but until COVID-19, the juvenile justice system wasn't equipped with the proper technology. Officials worked to change this and since March juveniles have been using video visits. However, not all family members have access to the internet or the proper technology. Officials in Utah noticed this as well. Brett Peterson, Director of the Division of Juvenile Justice Services in Utah, said, “These are typically the most underserved families in really challenging circumstances.” To accommodate these families, the juvenile justice system has begun to give smartphones to families who have no other way of staying in contact.
“Young people have gained and reestablished great connections with their family,” Peterson said. “Maybe they couldn’t have in-person visits historically and we didn’t have video capabilities.”
Peterson also noted that staff at detention centers were available to help family members “troubleshoot basic tech issues, like how to log-on and use video apps.” The new technology has also enabled young people to remain connected to therapists and school, Peterson said.
An Invitation to Respond
“But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God’s instruments to do his work and speak out for him” says 1 Peter 2:9. We are invited to “show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness and into his wonderful light.” This invitation calls us to speak up on behalf of others and to go above and beyond to demonstrate God’s goodness and recognize that denying the humanity of anyone within our community has an impact upon the well-being of our entire community. As Christians, we can call upon government officials to uphold public justice and promote policies that protect the physical health of young people and that help to keep them connected to important relationships.
There have been a number of resources recently developed to help Americans advocate on behalf of the well-being of juveniles in detention and their families. The Youth First Initiative has developed a comprehensive list of State Advocacy Actions and Tools that include a social media toolkit, letter templates and talking points for addressing state and community leaders, and a list of states that have issued executive orders addressing juvenile detention during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Under UNICEF, The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action recently published a toolkit and specific guidance for states to ensure the protection of the rights of minors in detention during this time, including protecting the health and well-being of minors in detention under international law, resources for providing mental health and psychosocial support services that are age-appropriate and gender-sensitive, guidelines for protecting minors from violence, and guidelines for Child Protection in the Context of the Coronavirus.
We can also call upon the government to work collaboratively with society institutions like churches and secular and faith-based nonprofits, for example, who provide important, holistic programming for youth in detention. While outside programming in detention centers has ceased due to COVID-19, creative uses of technology should be explored to continue to support the health and development of young people.
“What is unique about kids is they are experiencing anxiety and confusion differently than adults, and that compounds the normal stress” of being in detention, explains Ji Seon Song, the president of the Pacific Juvenile Detention Center. “The kids in juvenile hall are no different than (other) kids.” It is important to remember that minors are not yet fully developed, physically or mentally. The Equal Justice Initiative emphasizes “children’s diminished culpability, and heightened capacity for change” as they continue to mature.
As citizens guided by our faith and unwavering belief in the dignity and equality of our neighbors, it is our responsibility to advocate for the safety and well-being of the most vulnerable. This includes holding justice systems accountable, recognizing the racial disparities within America’s justice system, ensuring that minors have the opportunity to fully mature within safe environments, and advocating for humane treatment within detention centers – especially during the COVID-19 crisis.
Ten days after Pope Francis was installed to the papacy in 2013, he visited a juvenile detention center to wash the feet of a dozen prisoners as a reminder for each of us to embrace humility before one another, just as Jesus knelt to wash the feet of his disciples. Since that first visit, Pope Francis has made a point to visit detention centers annually to demonstrate the extension of God’s love beyond barriers and sin. God’s love initiates “integration and transformation, healing and forgiveness,” Pope Francis said at a juvenile detention center in Panama in 2019. The act of Jesus eating with sinners, he says, “shatters the mentality that excludes, isolates, and falsely separates…[because] each of us is much more than our labels.”
Sara Burback served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kazakhstan, and received her MA in International Human Rights at the University of Denver’s Korbel School of International Studies. She recently partnered with UNRWA USA to organize its first Relay Run for Refugees, and is now a Program Officer for Meridian International Center’s GlobalConnect program.
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