Covid-19 Isn’t Just a Virus, It’s a Whole Lot Worse For Humanity
The globally known COVID-19 is caused by a virus named SARS-CoV-2 that can spread through respiratory droplets via person to person. This virus will change your moral and ethical values due to the insensitivity caused by the overwhelming statistics, the lack of social interaction and human connection, and the frowning down upon those of lesser economic status or minorities.
During the spread of COVID-19, governments, newspapers, and trusted sources of information are bombarding individuals with statistics of every type, causing widespread insensitivity, lowering your moral values. How does this work? Well, the first sentence viewed on the WHO’s website is the statistic that “Globally, as of 4:45 pm PST, 24 June 2020, there have been 9,129,146 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 473,797 deaths, reported to WHO” (WHO 2020).
If an individual, like yourself, is concerned with their well-being views this statistic as the first piece of information about the virus, he/she will not only become frightened but slowly will be conditioned to accept death as a common event during these times because “343,562 deaths” have already occurred. However, after the virus, humanity will be coerced into not troubling ourselves with paramount global issues such as poverty and lack of education because the well-being of other humans is no longer a concern to us.
Globally, national governments are enforcing nationwide lockdowns and social distancing rules, leading to a general lack of empathy. In order to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the CDC recommends that one “stays six feet away from others” and to “limit in-person contact whenever possible” (CDC 2020). (FYI please follow these regulations, this article is not meant to mock these rules, only to reveal possible consequences)
One of the defining features of the human race is its ability to communicate with other people using facial expressions and body language. However, due to guidelines imposed due to the virus, such as avoiding “in-person contact” communication ceases, rifts will form between people that usually use face to face interactions to build their relationships. These rifts will eventually metastasize into a complete lack of consideration for other people and their feelings, destroying one of the fundamental pillars of human civilization.
As has happened in previous pandemics, people that are of lower economic status or have minority status have been hit hardest by not only the pathogens but also by the negative stigma associated with them. In Mumbai, India, many wealthier residents are determined to stay away from slum dwellers and have also “barred maids, watchmen, and casual laborers — many who live in the slums — from coming to work” (Gettleman 2020).
Unfortunately, removing people of lower economic status from their jobs digs them into an even deeper hole. Not only do they now have to deal with the virus, but it is also nearly impossible to get a job especially with individuals “determined to stay away from slum dwellers”. This problem will lead to an economic crisis that will widen that gap between the rich and the poor even further, felt only after the virus. With the further distance between the rich and poor comes a dissociation of the two economic categories. Though both groups are human, the rich will look down on the poorer and the poor will have to struggle to make a living. Furthermore, minorities that already have a history of being economically less fortunate than their majority counterparts are being affected even more. In Michigan, “black Americans comprise 14.1 percent of the state population, but an ungodly 40 percent of coronavirus deaths” (Kendi 2020).
Due to racism and preconceived stereotypes, minorities live in less wealthy neighborhoods, crowded with other people, increasing chances of viral transmission, creating higher cases. When most individuals view these statistics, they will notice that “40 percent of coronavirus deaths” are from the African American community, without considering the economic and social causes of why this is happening. This lack of retrospect will create further stigma and racism to minorities leading to worsening moral treatment toward them.
By writing this op-ed, I hope you remember that every death due to this pandemic is a real person, as real as yourself, or any of your acquaintances. I also pray you physically isolate yourself, but please don’t lose the relationships you have worked so hard to build. And finally, I wish you to reconsider what preconceived notions you have about other people, and change those notions, especially in light of current events.
