As of late, I find that when folks around me talk about the COVID-19 global health pandemic, they speak of it in the past tense. It is something that we have apparently gone through and have successfully come out on the other side of. This is a belief that is held both by children and adults, and it’s not surprising that many feel this way given the current trajectory that we are on. We are fully out of lockdown or precaution mode, although to be fair, we never really were that in line with these throughout the pandemic, to begin with. For the most part, things remained as per norm, just with added challenges for the working class to navigate as we grappled with the intensification of Guyana’s pre-existing socioeconomic issues.
What we have experienced and continue to experience is a global traumatic occurrence that minimizes human suffering and well-being. The wearing of masks and taking of vaccines has taken on a political function when it comes to beliefs of bodily autonomy. It is a curious thing to witness as many of the ones who saw mask usage as an affront to their rights, are those who regularly trod on the rights of others, as was seen with the case of the homophobic and anti-abortion pastor from Linden who led a protest action against vaccination.
The widening of the systemic gaps that existed, has contributed to increased poverty levels, homelessness, and under-nourishment all against the backdrop of illnesses and deaths caused by the health crisis. It does not help that increased food and living expenses seem to be perpetually and rapidly climbing, given interrupted global supply chain systems and the unwillingness of the government to implement support mechanisms aimed at ensuring people are not priced out of survival. What the government has seen the need for is ad hoc cash grants granted to citizens, but what impact do they really hope for through the small sums offered on their whim?
Provision of cash payments will never be something I will argue against. They can be incredibly helpful to those for whom any infusion of cash can make a difference. Arguments against cash grants often tend to demonize those who are poor but there are many studies about how these payments can improve the well-being of people. This however does not mean that cash grants are the only avenue, although it does seem like the sole preferred method of the current administration. The minimum wage, which was already dismal prior to the last increase, cannot compete with the rapid rise in costs that we have seen over these past two years and should be amongst the first priority areas of focus. Providing a single mother with school cash grants for her children or one-off grocery or rent relief is not as effective as ensuring that they are provided with well-resourced schools, VAT reductions and addressing of the inflated housing market.
It is understandable that the hyper-vigilance concerning our health and that of others has made people pandemic weary, but we must not do away with these measures completely, as doing so basically dooms a significant section of our population, particularly those who are immunocompromised and living with disabilities. One of the things that the pandemic initially really helped to spotlight was the challenges that persons living with disabilities faced, as people very quickly found themselves living lives that were isolated, and unable to participate in the things they once did. This helped to propel several of the things that disability advocates have been pushing for, for decades such as remote learning and working, and other accessibility measures. It must not be lost on us that these changes only came about following able-bodied persons’ need for accessibility, demonstrating the way the lives and experiences of those living with disabilities are seen as things they simply have to adjust to.
With things returning to “normal” persons living with disabilities are once again shifted into the background as the able-bodied are able to navigate the world that was built for them. We should be mindful however of the strong push for us to return to normal, whether that is returning to the office, returning to social events or returning to life without masks, because the reality is that the norm was not that great and had immense challenges for those who did not have certain privileges.
