When the pandemic first began - it felt like we were “all in it together”.
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When the pandemic first began - it felt like we were “all in it together”. It genuinely seemed like there was a desire to protect vulnerable people like myself.
Masks were worn regularly, accommodations and accessibility options (like virtual healthcare) opened up and people were volunteering to help people like myself so we could stay home and isolate.
I genuinely thought it was the first step towards a more inclusive society. Disabled people had been begging for virtual doctors appointments for years (going to the hospital takes many many spoons) and more remote and flexible work options. Suddenly they were everywhere! Along with expanded delivery services, neighbourhood groups and an increased level of compassion.
I can’t describe how much that hope meant to me. Just like it’s nearly impossible to describe the pain when it was ripped away. That “togetherness” didn’t last very long. People grew bored of making “sacrifices”. Of helping one another. They demanded a return to “normal”.
Just as quickly as accessibility arrived - it vanished. It took with it the last bit of hope I had for a kinder, gentler and less ableist society.
It hurts because those first few months showed me that inclusion IS possible. We CAN do it - people just don’t WANT to.
Perhaps the worst part is that we didn’t just lose inclusion and accessibility. Vulnerable people now bear the brunt of people’s anger over those lost months of their lives. They’re resentful and apparently WE are the reason.
In less than 4 years this is what we’ve been through:
🦠 protect the vulnerable
🦠 “Only the vulnerable” are at risk
🦠 The vulnerable may fall “by the wayside”
🦠 The vulnerable should stay home forever
🦠 Screw the vulnerable “survival of the fittest rules!”
Perhaps it’s a bit of an over simplification - but I can assure you it’s how many of us feel.
My ask of everyone tonight is to try and consider one way you can make the world a bit more inclusive. A bit kinder and gentler. A bit more welcoming to “the vulnerable”. Try and put yourself in our shoes.
We don’t want to “fall by the wayside” and we need more allies to make sure that doesn’t happen.
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You've reminded me of this essay. https://jacobin.com/2021/03/david-graeber-posthumous-essay-pandemic
So many lost futures.