Black funeral home directors continue to mourn in disbelief. They are the final responders in a pandemic where the demographic hit hardest is the community they serve. Their industry is in high demand due to COVID-19-related deaths, but no one prepared them for one immense sacrifice.
Everything about the traditional process of bereavement has shifted. From following new safety precautions when handling affected bodies, to capacity limitations storing the remains, and restrictions on the number of funeral attendees, business as usual is anything but.
As grieving families are forced to adapt to short, physically distant, poorly attended homegoing rituals, directors are doing their best to shore up supply chain challenges for protective gear, vans and hearses to meet the immediate needs of heartbroken families.
Whether it is to mourn a lost loved one or getting organized for social justice, the ability to gather en masse at funeral homes advances a tradition with only one comparison – the Black church.
As author Suzanne Smith explained to the Washington Post, “the funeral home has this completely powerful political meaning within black communities ...The traditions of the homegoing service are so powerful, and in [Black] culture, is so connected to ideas of freedom.”
As this public health crisis and civil unrest rages on, the political influence of funeral homes becomes even more apparent and essential.