Vulnerability and Detention in the Time of COVID: An American Failure

Overview & Synopsis

COVID's assault on humanity is not merely biological; it is social. Though death and illness are the most identifiable consequences of the virus, the damage to the social fabric is significant. The paradoxical challenge of COVID is that, to address it, human beings must distance themselves at a time when support and togetherness are most needed. Our analysis is framed in terms of the vulnerabilities embedded within our shared human existence and ethical issues rooted in the nature of our dependent state. Relying on notions of dignity, vulnerability, and community membership, we analyze a particularly horrific situation-the treatment of undocumented persons in the United States-and argue that COVID is not the sole culprit in the narrative of this last year, but rather it is a catalyst to the exacerbation of already existing inequalities. Finally, we offer examples of what a vulnerability-sensitive policy framework might look like in the context of COVID.