Dispatches from Quarantine:
Young People on Covid-19

I am 14 years old. I am writing this at 8:52 am on June 20th, in Montgomery County Maryland. And I am a witness. The pandemic, or however it will be called in the future because there are a whole bunch of names right now, started in january. And that was what we would consider normal. Back before March, it was only on the news. Sure, there were some pictures of Chinese citizens putting plastic water kegs on their heads to attempt to not be exposed to the virus, but none of it really mattered. There weren’t even any confirmed cases in the US. Up until March, everything was fine, so the government did nothing and even tried to downplay the risk, at one point calling it a sham and a hoax. It’s important to note that I do not want to take a side politically although the next election will be heated and I have very strong opinions. But it is important to recognize that our government and our leaders have failed us under the slightest pressure --  Republican, Democrat, whatever Mitt Romney is or was. This is our government’s fault. This is not the fault of the people, although mistakes were made by many. This was not inevitable, and this was not expected.

Anyway, things really started to get bad in March. Everything before March was what this generation would consider normal: no social distancing, no masks (the Japanese were way ahead of us), no stay at home order, no online school, no hesitation when there’s an ice cream truck outside. But things started to go downhill quickly and I doubt it will ever be the same. 

Now when you hear bad news at this point in history, future 2080 people reading this, what do you think of? Do you think of one million confirmed cases? Do you think of over 100,000 unnecessary deaths? Do you think of the protests nationwide after the horrific death of George Floyd? Do you think of those people beaten, maced, and shot with rubber bullets at those protests? Or do you think of the looting and want me to shut up about the part where I said our government failed us all? All of these things that you are thinking of, whatever chaos you are thinking of, happened within the span of like three months for one reason or another. Keep in mind that I’m writing this in June. Hopefully there isn’t something that I forgot to list after that. 

This pandemic has turned America upside down. Not the rest of the world – most other countries took what precautions they were able to – just the United States of America. 

On June 20th, at 9:13 am, America is in the process of cracking under stress. I shouldn’t need to list examples of all those cracks, I’m sure you know plenty (and I already did.) But we are breaking down for a reason. And the reason is ignorance; there may be factors, but that is the core. It is not my ignorance, it is not your ignorance, it was the ignorance of those who do not have to worry about caring. It was the ignorance of those who do not care. It is the ignorance of those who will be well off no matter what and who can screw anyone they want. These people will always be around, but at this point in time they are in control. I am on the outskirts of this group. I am helped by white privilege, and I have to put in major effort to empathize with those who are suffering. But I do my best because I know that this is some of what makes a person good, being able to empathize. But when all is said and done, I am just a witness. I may want to be more and want to do something, but I have no real need to take risks, which can’t be said for many protesters. I want to change this government, to help everyone equally and bury bigotry, but I am 14 years old. Wherever we are, things that affect our community will always affect us too. It may not be direct but just having knowledge and being informed is what allows us to look at ourselves and how we are in relation, which is very real no matter how small it may seem. 

Empathy and knowledge are our saviors, and ignorance is the enemy. The two sides are clashing violently right now, as both want the other to be extinguished. During this time of suffering, one side is fighting for change and the other side is fighting for staying put. These sides are fighting above the suffering in the streets and the stupid people down below claiming that things are actually going fine. This pandemic has shown what was already there, and it will end as one of the most important times in the history of the US, if not the world. 

And I am a witness.