An online yoga studio is providing free classes to federal employees and Social Security recipients affected by the ongoing government shutdown.
Badlands Healing Yoga announced it will offer complimentary access to all livestream, in-person and video-on-demand classes to furloughed federal workers and those experiencing delays with Social Security or disability benefits.
“While these are frustrating times, yoga can help,” said Christine Stump, the studio’s founder, in the announcement.
Stump said she made the decision almost on a whim on Thursday.
“We all know that the government’s shut down, and as a business person, I don’t want to be at all partisan about it — but I do find it really frustrating,” Stump said. “I know that people are hurt by this, and it makes me feel powerless. And so I thought, ‘Well, what can I do?’ And what I do full-time is teach yoga.”
Stump said the last time there was a long shutdown in 2018, she was teaching yoga at the Forest Service. She offered free yoga then, and a lot of people who had never tried yoga before took a crack at it, she said. This made it feel like a “no-brainer” to offer the same service this year, she said.
Federal employees need only provide the name of their agency to qualify for the free classes, while Social Security and disability recipients can simply state they are waiting on benefits. The studio said all information provided remains private and recipients’ identities will not be disclosed.
Eligible participants can fill out a form on the studio’s website and will receive a unique access code within 48 hours, or 72 hours on weekends. Classes can be booked at badlandsyoga.com/schedule.
The shutdown has left thousands of federal employees either furloughed or working without pay, while Social Security Administration offices have reduced staffing that could affect benefit processing and customer service.
Stump said shutdowns cause harm on an individual level and for government projects. Yoga can help with self-regulation and relieving the anxiety and uncertainty that the political climate can bring, she said.
“Self-regulation is just another way of talking about how we can remain in connection even when we disagree. Maybe especially when we disagree,” Stump said. “And this is basic to us seeing the humanity in one another. And that in turn is basic to us fulfilling the promise of our democracy.”
Stump said she strives to welcome anybody into the yoga community, whether they can afford it or not.
“Yoga should be available to anybody who wants to do it, and yoga teachers should also be supported,” Stump said. “So I do whatever I can to bring those two ends together.”
For assistance with the registration process, participants can contact the studio at hello@badlandsyoga.com or call 505-506-0136.
The current government shutdown began after Congress failed to pass funding legislation by the deadline.
