FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 3, 2024
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Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Passes Resolution Condemning Prolonged Solitary Confinement as Torture, Urges All Presbyterians to Join Efforts to End its Use

SALT LAKE CITY, UT– On Tuesday, July 2, 2024, the 226th General Assembly of The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) adopted a “Resolution On Ending Solitary Confinement.” The resolution “urges all Presbyterians to call upon their city, state, and federal elected officials to enact legislative or administrative reforms ending prolonged solitary confinement in city, state and federal jails, prisons, and detention centers.”

“Recognizing the inherent dignity and immeasurable worth of every human being and the church’s foundational principles of grace, forgiveness, redemption, and restoration, this important action calls us to bold action to end torture,” said the Rev. Judy Slater of the Presbytery of the Redwoods, who spoke in favor of the resolution.

In addition, the Rev. Ellen L. Keyser of the John Knox Presbytery, which includes parts of Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin, said, “In my work as a hospital chaplain and as a minister I have seen first-hand the emotional and physical toll of solitary confinement on those who have experienced it. I have encountered those who were incarcerated who felt possible death or inflicting injury upon themselves was preferable to another moment of solitary. The practice is inhumane and a violation of human dignity. Those whom I have met who have experienced solitary are disproportionately suffering from mental illness - which was met with inhumane punishment rather than treatment.”

“As long as the use of solitary confinement persists, individuals are being tortured. I hope that this is the beginning of a conversation, and movement, in which our Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) becomes part of the call for reform, redemption, and true healing,” said Rev. Keyser.

“For the more than 122,000 people in the U.S. who on any given day face solitary confinement and their families, this resolution will bring hope, knowing that the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) stands firmly beside them in their struggle to stop the harm this torture is causing in our communities,” said Rev. Ron Stief, Executive Director of the National Religious Campaign Against Torture.

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) now joins The Episcopal Church and The United Church of Christ denominations in passing similar resolutions denouncing the torture of solitary confinement. The National Religious Campaign Against Torture serves as an ongoing source of coordination and education for its diverse religious partners engaged in campaigns at the state and national level to end the torture of solitary confinement for all.

The National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT) is a membership organization committed to ending U.S.-sponsored torture, and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. Since its formation in January 2006, more than 300 religious organizations have joined NRCAT, including representatives from the Catholic, evangelical Christian, mainline Protestant, Unitarian Universalist, Quaker, Orthodox Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Baha’i, Buddhist, and Sikh communities. Members include national denominations and faith groups, regional organizations and local congregations.

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