Standing Up for Food Justice in a Time of Fear: Pandemic Reflections
By Chase Louden
The COVID-19 pandemic may seem like ancient history to some, but the effects of the pandemic linger. In this contribution, Chase Louden recalls a time of mass hunger—and a time when a third of all US food pantries shut their doors. Yet volunteers in Brooklyn stood up and made a different decision—to stay open and expand operations.
What does it mean to stand up for justice?
Starting in 2018, I volunteered at Los Sures Comida—located in the Williamsburg neighborhood, a heavily Puerto Rican section of Brooklyn. It was a growing operation, distributing food to about 600 community members once a month.
At the start of the pandemic, the authorities were clear: “Stay home, limit face-to-face contact, and maintain at least six feet of distance at all times.” There was a part of me, certainly, that wanted to obey these instructions to protect my loved ones and myself.
But volunteering at a food pantry meant doing the exact opposite. It required going outside of our homes, having regular face-to-face contact, and maintaining far less than six feet of distance with the people to whom we were distributing food. Many pantries were closing. As volunteers, many of us did have a choice, and we could have stayed home. But we decided to put ourselves on the line and stay open.
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