"We’re (not) all in this together”

The COVID-19 pandemic is a global crisis unfolding at the intersection of public health, socioeconomics, human behavior, and space. Two articles from this week's news sites help highlight the contrast between rich and poor.

In a report for the BBC, Katy Watson predicted inequities that will result as the virus strikes vulnerable populations (Source: Watson, K. (2020, March 24). Coronavirus in South America: How it became a class issue. BBCNews.). Tracking outbreaks across South America, Watson indicated that the earliest diagnoses have been in wealthier people who returned home after contracting the virus while traveling internationally. Watson suggested that these patients had access to good healthcare and the ability to isolate themselves. Conversely, people from lower income levels, who are now starting to contract COVID, fear that they will not be able to separate themselves and that the virus will spread rapidly through their neighborhoods.  

Differences between austerity and scarcity—as described by Jeremy Till in “Scarcity contra Austerity”—will be evident as the pandemic continues. A scarcity of medical equipment and supplies, the stress on the economy, widespread disruption to daily life, and the 24-hour news cycle are fueling a shared sense that “we’re all in this together.” However, when we consider factors such as employment, access to healthcare, social attitudes, and access to physical space, members of some populations will have fared far better than others when this crisis is over.

Boston Globe columnist Yvonne Abraham attempted to dispel the neoliberal myth that “we are all in this together” (Source: Abraham, Y. (2020, March 26). The rich and famous get coronavirus, too. But it’s no equalizer. Boston Globe.). Contrary to a social media post from Madonna, who called the virus a “great equalizer,” Abraham noted that wealthy people will experience the pandemic differently. In addition to exercising their privilege to get early testing and better care, Abraham noted that popular destination towns, where wealthy people own second homes, are trying to limit influxes of those who are fleeing cities to take advantage of local hospitals.

In “The City and Spatial Justice,” Edward Soja noted that “the intersection of space, knowledge, and power can be both oppressive and enabling.” Unfortunately, we will see this play out multiple times in the weeks to come.