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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe next death wave from COVID-19 will be the poor, rural, and white
What do you call a crisis that kills a hundred thousand Americans? It all depends on who does the dying.
At first, it seemed like it was mostly white people infected and/or killed by the coronavirus.
As the scale of the coronavirus pandemic dawned on Americans during the month of March, most of the media attention was given to white people like Tom Hanks, while the danger of coronavirus to black people went largely underreported by American media. It was around this time when both the media and the White House decreed it a national emergency.
The early cases that made the news and caught everybodys attention were mainly wealthy white people whod traveled to the West Coast from Asia and the East Coast from Europe.
Trumps official national emergency declaration came on March 11, and most of the country shut down or at least went partway toward that outcome. The economy crashed and millions of Americans were laid off, but saving lives was, after all, the number one consideration.
Trump put medical doctors on TV daily, the media was freaking out about refrigerated trucks carrying bodies away from New York hospitals, and doctors and nurses were our new national heroes.
And then came April 7, 2020.
Cities have been stricter than rural areas. Blue states more than red. Even where a state's governor has chosen to open, city/county governments have put in stricter orders for social distance or masks. And then liberals take this much more seriously than conservatives because of course we do.
Like drug addiction and similar problems, America is not going to take it seriously on the national level until it hits rural areas hard. And small towns have fewer resources to deal with it.
dawg day
(7,947 posts)which was perceived as a problem mostly in urban inner city communities. The response was "the war against drugs", brutal crackdowns, long imprisonments, outrage at the sinfulness of the users.
Then as soon as the drug problem became opioids in rural white areas-- though it was far, far more destructive than crack ever was-- addiction became a "sickness" and the response was not imprisonment but rehab. So much sympathy was expended on the white rural addicts!
Same thing will probably happen as soon as Covid-19 gets hold in Alabama and Downstate Illinois. OF course, that will probably result in even more blaming of "foreigners" and "urbanites."
The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,280 posts)in all indoor places of public accommodation. There will be some whining, I'm sure, but there has been a surge in the number of cases, especially in one area. This neighborhood is densely populated, and many of the residents are Somali immigrants who work in essential service jobs. https://www.startribune.com/virus-hits-hard-in-minneapolis-cedar-riverside-neighborhood/570711332/ Since this is a generally liberal city there will probably be good compliance with the rule.
Shanti Mama
(1,288 posts)And most people I know or see are still complying with distancing and masks. As am I.
R02091201
(95 posts)NickB79
(19,114 posts)My mom works there, but thankfully wasn't infected.
My family isn't taking it seriously at all, DESPITE it being in their town.
Last week they took a family trip across the state line to eat in a restaurant and shop. They proudly posted pics (mask-free) on Facebook. My sister just had a big birthday party for her daughter this week.
My grandma is 80 and in poor health. They won't stop until she's dead.