Every week at All Saints Church we put our faith into action. This week we are asking people to petition the Tennessee Valley Authority to place a moratorium on utility shutoffs for their ten million customers in the Southeast.

Access to water and electricity are fundamental human rights. And they are even more important during a pandemic when people are spending more time at home. Without water, you cannot wash your hands, clean yourself and your children, or your home. Without power, you cannot properly control the temperature in your home, keep food and medicines refrigerated, or access remote learning tools.

But despite all this, communities are getting their utilities shut off — with literal life and death consequences. But it does not have to be this way. The Tennessee Valley Authority is a government-owned entity that generates electricity for ten million people in the Southeast, which is distributed through local utility companies. Thousands of people who cannot pay are getting their water and electricity cut.

For example, TVA supplies electricity to Memphis, TN, where the poorest residents already spend a staggering 25 percent of their monthly income on utilities. With the pandemic, thousands of Memphians do not have the ability to pay off their growing utility bills while they face loss of income, food insecurity, and medical debt. In September, the Memphis utility company began shutoffs — cutting electricity to 400 people every 15 minutes.

This is immoral. We need the TVA to institute a shutoff moratorium for Memphis and all the communities they serve throughout the region. Otherwise, COVID-19 will continue to spread as people are forced to congregate at friends and families’ homes or shelters to access water and warmth.

Take action to demand a moratorium on utility shutoffs for some of the most impacted communities in the United States.