120 interfaith leaders in New York call for vaccination of prisoners

Over 120 interfaith religious leaders in New York call on NY Governor Andrew Cuomo to vaccinate prisoners against COVID-19.

Following a New York Times report revealing that prisons had been left out of the initial stages of Cuomo’s vaccination plan, Christian, Muslim, and Jewish leaders sign onto a letter calling on him to ensure that incarcerated individuals are included in the current phase of the inoculation rollout.

The letter, co-sponsored by Congregation Beit Simchat Torah and Mt. Zion Church of God 7th Day, with the support of Center for Community Alternatives and the New York Jewish Agenda, highlights Cuomo’s responsibility to prevent outbreaks in the New York prison system, where dozens of the 50,000 incarcerated have succumbed to the coronavirus.

“We are compelled to speak publicly today because to deny access to the vaccine to this population would be a grave public health risk and a violation of the core value of human dignity that lies at the heart of all our faith traditions,” the faith leaders write to Cuomo.