Disclaimer: This column contains explicit language. Reader discretion is advised.
Fuck 2020, worst year ever, can’t wait for it to be over. I’m sure you’ve read different versions of that same statement all over your social media platform of choice. It’s hard to find the words to communicate how bad this year has been without repeating a variation of the same sentiment we’ve all heard over and over again.
Back in March, as the country watched the federal government fall flat on its face in responding to the pandemic, I believed that the disaster could bring out the best in the American people. I thought that as we watched this purposeful failure to protect the public health from the government, more people would recognize who the enemy is. Our problems don’t come from other Americans, but the corrupt, despot politicians who hold career seats in government. The ones who enabled Trump to not take action, and only serve the interests of their billionaire corporate donors.
Eight months later, with a worsening pandemic, the citizenry still haven’t gotten a lifeline. How convenient for the billionaires that we turned on each other.
This year absolutely has brought out courage and resilience in Americans from all walks of life. And no one has been completely perfect in following social distancing and other public health guidelines.
But even as so many of us have isolated ourselves from our previous social lives, or fought hard in the medical field to contain the virus, there are too many people who refuse to change their lives in any meaningful way for us to stop the spread. This selfishness is the only thing that is holding us back from containment. We have an individualistic society. That’s not always a bad thing, but it is when an individual thinks they have the freedom to put other lives at risk.
If you are someone who’s so privileged that you still don’t think we’re in a public health emergency, or just got tired of caring, why don’t you go up and say what you think to someone who lost a sibling, or a parent, or grandparent to the virus? Or even their fucking child. COVID-19 probably won’t kill you, but they certainly might.
Some people don’t have the privilege of a job where they can stay home and quarantine. There are people who could lose their home and starve if they don’t keep going to work. People who are in that situation can’t be expected to stay home if the government won’t pay to assist them, and $1,200 eight months ago does not even begin to cut it.
Instead of getting enraged at congress for not passing a larger stimulus package that gave more people the ability to stay home longer, people who were still employed became angry at those who had increased unemployment benefits. Instead of getting mad at your out of work neighbor who made more money, why didn’t you demand your employer pay you what your labor is worth?
Given the rapid pace that COVID-19 is spreading, we’re in for a brutal winter. Joe Biden entering the white house and new vaccine developments are huge points of optimism, but it’s going to get far worse before it’s any better. The danger of losing a family member, friend or your own life is greater now than it has been the entire year.
COVID-19 has cost every American something different and that price overwhelmingly falls on the back of our most vulnerable members of society. It was always going to be that way; fighting this epidemic was never going to be easy, especially with our individualistic society, but it never had to be this painful.
Stay safe, and take care of each other, because we can’t rely on or trust the federal government to protect us. Our leaders failed to take action when we needed it most, and that’s something that we should never forget, and never forgive.
