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wsmith215 · 4 years

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COVID-19 Is like an X-ray of Society

In many ways, coronavirus has functioned like an x-ray. With the flip of a switch, it has stripped us of our skin and revealed our internal state, which was once so deliberately hidden, so to avoid the gaze and judgment of the outside world. We are left exposed, vulnerable, illuminated.

In this state, we are confronted with a new awareness: our world as we choose to perceive it does not necessarily match the truth of how it functions. The racism that so many people believe to have been buried in our history long ago now clearly presents itself in the racial demographic data—or lack thereof—for COVID-19. The classism that has divided our society into the haves and have-nots is now revealed with deadly implications, as access to testing or treatment depends on one’s connections and ability to pay, respectively. Numerous other forms of inequality and injustice are becoming apparent, as I will argue throughout this piece—each of which provides further evidence to the point that coronavirus is an x-ray that has quite tragically revealed just how broken our bones are.

When coronavirus first spread through Wuhan, so too did the x-ray’s exposure: illuminating a pervasive fear of the other, and the xenophobia that follows; exposing how we speak before we think, and the extent to which we project our own prejudice. According to press reports, on February 2, an Asian American woman in Chinatown was attacked for wearing a face mask; and on March 10, another Asian American woman was attacked for not wearing a face mask. It seems you’re damned if you do, and you’re damned if you don’t. Consider these stories without the mention of any face mask: two Asian American women were attacked. Our x-ray confirms what it’s like to be a minority in this country. What it’s like to be a woman.

This is what coronavirus looked like when it was “theirs” and not “ours.” But the virus finally did the inevitable and spread to our soil. And so too did the unforgiving gaze of that which strips skin, tears tissue and loosens ligaments. The resultant x-ray image displayed the ease with which we sacrifice our own, as if we had already collectively decided which lives were worth saving—and which were not.

I read a headline on April 20: “73% of Inmates At An Ohio Prison Test Positive For Coronavirus.” Now why is that unsurprising? America’s inmates are some of our most vulnerable people, and they are also some of our least protected. Should we not offer our most protection to our most vulnerable? We do so with children—coddling them with safety precautions and protective measures, so they feel a bit more empowered. A little less vulnerable. Now think about situations of mismatch: where an individual’s relative vulnerability is not mirrored in her relative level of protection. Do you have individuals in mind? Perhaps entire communities? And how are they faring with the pandemic?

Because the prison population is but one example. A community that is overcrowded—in Ohio, specifically, filling nearly 130 percent of intended capacity—insufficiently protected and hence suffering disproportionately. There have been marginal efforts to alleviate this problem, by freeing some inmates, but the efforts themselves are problematic. For one, the numbers released are small, and often even these have sparked political resistance. And I cannot help but wonder, whom do authorities choose to release and why? Because if the release process in any way reflects the incarceration process, something tells me it may not be fair. If white inmates are more readily released than inmates of color, are we not exacerbating the racial disparities in our criminal justice system? Indeed, at the federal level, an algorithm that the Justice Department is relying on for such decisions has raised fears it will produce racially biased results.

In general, data about race and COVID-19 are insufficient. The Trump administration has announced that it will not disclose the details of how the disease is affecting different racial groups until early May—raising the question of whether this delay is being used to gather the most factual and comprehensive data possible, or if instead the delay is obscuring what we already know to be true: minorities, specifically black persons, in our society have time and time again been disproportionately negatively affected during emergency situations or crises. We need not look beyond 2005, when Hurricane Katrina ravaged the same area of New Orleans that is now facing an astonishing COVID-19 infection rate of 1,637.4 per 100,000 people. But if we did, and we jumped back in time to 1927 Mississippi, we would note that of the victims of the state’s Great Flood, 90 percent were black.

Now, we are seeing similar trends, but on a much larger scale. As of April 3, black Americans represented 81 percent of COVID deaths in Milwaukee, despite only making up 26 percent of the population in that area. At that same point in time, 70 percent of Chicago’s deaths from COVID-19 were black Americans, who make up only 29 percent of the city’s population. Similarly, in Michigan, black persons in early April represented 40 percent of COVID-19 related deaths—more than three times their share of the population.

And black Americans are not the only minority group being disproportionately affected. As of mid-April, COVID-19 infection and hospitalization rates among Latinos in Utah were three times those of the state’s white population; and there, as well as in Oregon, New Jersey and Washington— three other states that had released demographic data—the proportion of Latino COVID-19 patients was nearly double that of Latino residents.

Moreover, even the racial and ethnic data that exists are incomplete. There has been at least one instance of a Latino COVID-19 victim’s body being incorrectly identified and recorded as “white” when deceased. Such mistakes would have the dual effect of decreasing the number of counted Latino deaths and increasing the number of counted white deaths—thus reducing the perceived ethnic disparity. And Trump’s hostility toward undocumented Latino immigrants had already made such individuals more fearful about seeking health care. In consequence, such immigrants may be less likely to get tested for COVID-19, again tainting the demographic data.

The pandemic has made it abundantly clear that the well-connected and well-to-do enjoy a degree of privilege that directly benefits their own COVID-specific health outcomes and those of surrounding people, who are presumably from a comparable socioeconomic background. Celebrities and other social elites have been able to be tested for COVID-19 even if they are asymptomatic, when such options have not been readily available to the average person.

If one of these wealthier individuals were to test positive, they would likely have enough square footage in their house to self-quarantine in a relatively comfortable fashion and not put their family members at risk of infection. Furthermore, if they were to develop severe systems, they would also probably have a health insurance plan that would cover their treatment. Now to contrast this situation with individuals who are less socioeconomically stable; they are more likely to live in crowded homes where self-quarantining may not even be possible, not have an insurance plan to cover the costs of COVID-19 care, or might even depend so much on a regular paycheck that they still need to attend work while sick—thus exposing other persons to the virus.

These issues, however, are not the faults of poorer persons, just as they are not the faults of minority groups, or of the incarcerated. The issues are instead rooted in the structural injustices that gave rise to disparities on the basis of wealth, race, ethnicity and criminal status. Perhaps now more than ever before, we can see those structural injustices—illuminated, exposed, revealed. They are, in fact, difficult to ignore.

This, I argue, is the x-ray effect. The coronavirus has spread across the world like a dark substance—blinding us with fear, arresting us in uncertainty. But once we flip that switch, that is, once we ignite the radiation, we are made aware of what exists beneath the surface: all that our aesthetic world has strategically covered up or ignored. And with that awareness comes the responsibility to attend to the issues that have been previously neglected and the persons who have been historically burdened. The examples I offered above are only a few that have come to light since the beginning of our global pandemic. We are also witnessing prejudice against elderly populations, persons with disabilities, rural communities, homeless persons and other vulnerable groups.

So just as an earthquake is bound to first destroy the structures that are least sound, and a hurricane will swallow anything already struggling to stay afloat, a pandemic disproportionately takes the lives already compromised. They are our society’s most vulnerable, and our least protected; not for who they are, but for the meaning and sense of worth that our systems have projected onto them. So, the systems are the problem. And the systems are our bones. The skeletal system of our society, which we expect to support us—not to betray us. But upon closer look, from our pandemic perspective, our bones are broken.

No, shattered.

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mariacontipsu-blog · 6 years

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ACTION

There are many definitions of the word “action,” but the definition that resonates with me is that it is a step towards accomplishing a specific goal or purpose. To me, this means that it is something done purposefully to generate a specific outcome. People may believe they have very strong morals and ethical values, but it is hard to see if those are really the guidelines that decide our daily behavior. Being home this weekend, I was thinking about what I was going to do this summer to make money. After looking at different job opportunities, and thinking about what I’ve done during previous summers, I decided that I want to spend most of my time volunteering. I would like to split my time between volunteering for a local animal shelter, Animal Friends, and a nursing home for the elderly, St. Barnabas. This is an “action” that I will take to better my community and also better myself. This is a choice that lines up with the type of person I would like to be in the future, someone who chooses to help people, instead of working solely for a paycheck. This wasn't a very easy decision for me, because being a college student, I don’t have a lot of extra money to spend. But I know that this decision will leave me feeling better than the hostessing job that I held, last summer. Our actions define who we are. I think that when we decide the path we would like to take, we have to step back and see if we are being influenced by unconscious biases, we must decide the goal that we are trying to accomplish, and we should decide who will be benefiting from this action.

https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/19/opinion/more-community-service-not-less.html

In an article published by the New York Times, the Editorial Board discusses the proposed budget cuts for deferral funding of community service. These budget cuts would affect underprivileged schools, communities, and community service organizations on a grand scale and would produce only a very small chance in the National Budget. This would hurt communities who are already suffering financially, and would lessen the help that volunteers are able to give to these communities. This money would then be put towards an action that the Federal Government considers more important than helping those in need.

https://theglobalobservatory.org/2017/08/tunisia-violence-against-women-law/

This second article, published by the Global Observatory, breaks apart Tunisia’s new law that protects women against domestic abuse. While this is a step towards equality, it amazes me that this action is only being taken now. Discrimination and violence against women is something that should not require a law for people to see that it is not right. I believe that the environment that people grow up in creates the unconscious biases that lead to this discrimination and the tendency to turn a blind eye to these issues. Even if someone does not personally show disrespect towards women, ignoring knowledge of domestic abuse and mistreatment is just as damaging. This new law will be a step towards the elimination of this issue, but in this case, it is bystanders duty to take ACTION to fight those who ignore the law. If people don’t actively report cases of domestic abuse and ask about situations where they believe this may be occurring, the effects of this new law will not be able to help the women who really need it.

https://onbeing.org/programs/marie-howe-the-power-of-words-to-save-us-may2017/

“Action has become what we say,” Ms. Howe states, in “The Power of Words to Save Us.” She discusses the power of words and also the power of silence. In today’s society, “taking action” means speaking out against things that are unethical and working against issues of discrimination, sexism, racism, and other social issues. Howe uses poetry to attempt to bring voice to issues that are not often discussed. Minorities often experience being “silenced,” stopped from bringing their mistreatment to light and having their opinions invalidated. The power of speaking out and showing your support can give communities the encouragement that they need to work towards equality for genders, races, religions, and other groups of people. Words are important because they touch us in ways that physical actions do not. They have the power to reach your emotions and can become the mantra for suffering individuals. The simple act of voicing your support or opinion can open people’s minds to the possibility of ideas that they may have not grown up believing.

https://onbeing.org/programs/pico-iyer-the-art-of-stillness/

In this podcast, Pico Iyer discusses the art of silence. He delves into his experiences of traveling with the Dalai Lama and the importance of stillness and just being. He explains the Dalai Lama’s opinion of the importance of deepening your roots in your beliefs and truly coming to know yourself. I interpreted this podcast to be about truly being present and your daily life and consciously observing your surroundings. When you choose to take action, you should not act out of impulse, because these actions may be hindered by unconscious biases and generalizations. Every decision that we make has a rippling effect, and we must recognize who is being affected by our decisions and if the outcome is something that we wish for. We may view something as insignificant, but taking time to be still, to meditate, and come back to our roots, we can be less affected by the issues to society and be guided instead by our moral compass.

Even though I do try to consciously take action to produce positive outcomes, when you are faced with so many daily decisions, it is easy to fall into a path that you did not intend. A conscious action that I take on a daily basis is to try and recognize when I am affected by biases and assumptions. Ever since learning about unconscious biases in class, it is something that I try to step back and recognize. By doing this, I try to become aware of myself and the things that affect my thoughts and actions. In life, it is important to be aware of your surroundings and conscious of societal issues, even if they do not directly affect you. Even though you are only one person, every action that you take can affect another person in either a positive or negative way. For example, during my time volunteering, I hope to have a positive impact on the people and the animals that I encounter, even if it is only for a short period of time. After reading these articles and podcasts, I feel I have better tools to be able to make decisions that represent my beliefs and value. I will try to take more time to be “still” and come to terms with my own behavior and if it mirrors what I want my behavior to be. I will try to be silent and take in all of my surroundings, both physical and the societal issues that affect those around me, instead of acting impulsively. Lastly, I will try to use my voice to actively support the causes that I support, because it is ignorant to believe that these communities will benefit if no one speaks out. For example, with the federal budget issue, if no one voiced their disapproval, the act may be passed without a second glance, leading many communities and organizations to further suffering. These are important things to consider, when dealing with issues of minorities, sexism, violence against women, racism, and other issues in our world.

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