Walter Ance
Photograph of Walter Ance, courtesy of the Ance family, by way of The City.
What is to be said for the prisoners of the world? “The Lord hears the needy and does not despise his captive people” (Ps. 69:33 NIV). What is to be said for those accused of or convicted of crimes that weigh heavily in the court of public opinion? Often, anyone who sits in jail or prison is no longer thought of by the general public. They are unseen and unheard. Their life suddenly loses value, They are forgotten. Yet, Walter Ance is remembered by his family. Walter Ance is still loved. As Jesus remembered one of the men being crucified with him and answered “truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43), so too is Walter remembered. He suffered in fear and condemnation at Rikers Island jail in New York in close proximity with other men. By this he contracted covid-19. Then he died, handcuffed to a hospital bed. His experience and his death is important. Walter's untimely death sheds light on the ways the world has forgotten to “continue to remember those in prison as if (they) were in together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if (they themselves) were suffering” (Hebrews 13:3). Many people rush to throw stones, forgetting their own misdeeds in thought, word, and action, all the while forgetting the common threads of humanity that tie everyone to one another: the concepts of love, of hope, of redemption. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). In this way, we as humans must remember the lowly and contrite of spirit who suffer in the here and now for their wrongs. Prisoners are still people with families, children, mothers and fathers. They are our brothers and sisters. They are beings that are living, breathing, thinking, and feeling. They are Walter Ance.
Grace and mercy is a free gift, deserving of no one. We can never minimize the pain we inflict on others, nor can we ignore the ways that we break people when we continuously hang guilt and judgement over their heads. Whether prisoner or free, all people deserve dignity. We cannot allow the worst thing that anyone of us has ever done to define our humanity. We must love. We must hope. We must learn to forgive and reconcile. Walter's death is a tragedy that forces us all to reconsider and redefine justice, punishment, and forgiveness. He may have died stigmatized as an incarcerated person who is accused of harming another human being, but now as he rests in peace, his sins no longer matter. He is free. He is redeemed. He awaits the rest of us in paradise where there is no more death, no more sickness, no more violence, no more worries, no more pain, and no more covid-19!
To God be the glory and may the memory of Walter Ance live inside of the hearts of all who take the time to love as Jesus loved the social outcasts, but of this day and age. “Lord what are human beings that you care for them, mere mortals that you think of them?” (Ps. 144:3). How much more should we think of each other?
This memorial was written by MOL team member Tiara Smith with information from reporting by Rebecca Rosenberg of the New York Post. Transcribed by Ivana Bozic.