Viewpoints: Decades Of Progress Across The World Are Being Quickly Undone; Reopening Too Early Is Sacrificing Black, Brown Lives
Opinion writers weigh in on these pandemic issues and others.
The Washington Post:
The Pandemic’s Second Stage Is Here — And It’s Getting Ugly
In much of the developed world, the coronavirus curve is slowly flattening, but this obscures a tragic reality — the second phase of the crisis has begun as the novel virus spreads to the developing world. Ten of the top 12 countries with the largest number of new confirmed infections are now from the ranks of emerging economies, led by Brazil, Russia, India, Peru and Chile. The resulting devastation would likely reverse years, if not decades, of economic progress. (Fareed Zakaria, 5/28)
ABC News:
Some People Of Color Worry Reopening Rethreads Nation's Dark Economic Narrative
When viewed through a prism of historic inequity, broken government promises and the perspective of what appears to be an apparent willingness to sacrifice black and brown lives all for the sake of patriotic progress -- communities of color worry that efforts to reopen come at a deadly price. "We’re opening too soon at the expense of poor and low-income working people, and at the expense of the American public. This false choice, that you have to either open up, or go to work and possibly die, is a choice, it didn’t have to be this way,” Reverend Dr. William Barber, co-chairman of The Poor People’s Campaign told ABC Nightline co-anchor Byron Pitts during the network’s recent series "Pandemic: A Nation Divided" speaking broadly of reopening's impact on low-income essential workers of all races. (Halimah Abdullah, 5/29)
The New York Times:
What Can We Learn From The Coronavirus In Prisons
As political leaders across the United States seek to make informed decisions about when to “reopen” based on inadequate scientific information, 2,500 men in an Ohio prison may hold the key to hold the key to releasing the rest of the country from coronavirus lockdown. The coronavirus has spread like wildfire in American prisons and jails, and at least 415 incarcerated people have died of virus-related causes. At the Marion Correctional Institution in Ohio, in April, about 80 percent of the 2,500 or so residents had tested positive. (Marc M. Howard, 5/29)
The Hill:
The Price Of Speaking Out: Protecting Health Workers Amid COVID-19
Frustrated and scared, health care workers have taken risks to speak out about the dangerous lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) and other safety provisions to care for patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many are being silenced, threatened, suspended, or dismissed from their jobs instead of being commended for their commitment to safety as they risk their lives to carry out their professional duties. (Susannah Sirkin, Elizabeth Kaselitz and Dr. Ranit Mishori, 5/28)
Stat:
The U.S. Needs To Change How It Deals With Mental Illness
Before Covid-19 arrived in the U.S., the country was in the midst of a mental illness crisis. Suicide rates in the United States rose 33% between 1999 and 2017. In 2018, 1.7 million people had an opioid use disorder. Now a deadly virus and the resulting isolation and economic hardship threaten to exacerbate the crisis. (Jeffrey Geller, 5/29)
The Hill:
Assist Mental Health Of Workers By Increasing Access To Telemedicine
Without action, the lack of behavioral health care services in the U.S. will have social and economic consequences. As the country deals with unemployment, unprecedented economic pain, and as we look towards reopening the nation, we must take concrete steps to support the mental health of the American workforce. (Emily Dickens, 5/28)
Boston Globe:
Remember Nurses? They’re Still On The Front Lines. And They Still Need Protection
As we watch the case numbers tick down and our state open up, there’s something health care workers would like you to know: They’re still on the front lines of this pandemic, still taking risks they never anticipated. And they’re still plagued by the dangerous shortages of personal protective equipment that so outraged us way back in March, when we celebrated them as heroes. (Yvonne Abraham, 5/27)
