Black Lives Matter in the Time of COVID-19

This past weekend, the country erupted with pain over the murder of George Floyd. Protests erupted all over the nation and in many places, people traveled from rural areas and city sprawls alike by the thousands to show up for the Black Lives Matter movement in honor of innocent African Americans murdered by police officers. These protests are occurring on a historical scale during a historical pandemic, and it is important to recognize the potential risks. 

According to New York Times, many public health experts are concerned at the lack of social distancing that takes place at these protests. And it makes sense: protesting is almost impossible to do while maintaining a safe 6 feet of distance from every other person around. Given the limiting nature of most public spaces, such as streets, parks, and other sites of protest, there is only so much physical space. Plus, one of the main points of protesting is that people are there to show a collective force. 

Another point to consider is the chaos that has been present at many of these protests. In several cities across the nation, multiple days of protests have been declared “riots”, and serious police action has been taken against protesters. They have been subjected to pepper spray, rubber bullets, legal curfews, and forceful dispersion. Additionally, there has been chaos among the protesters or between protestors and outside instigators, sometimes turning into violent attacts and retaliations, as well as fires being set, buildings been broken into, and large scale theft and looting. In these instances, it is especially difficult for people to maintain space from eachother, and it is likely not a top focus for them in the midst of the chaos. 

Nobody can know with certainty what will happen, but it is certain that greater exposure to others and close proximity are risk factors for contracting COVID-19. Health experts warn that it masks may not be enough to protect people from the virus. But, with multiple crises happening in the United States, we have to do our best to divide our attention to where it matters and be as safe as possible doing it. Below is a tweet from the New York City department of public health:

Click on the link below to read more from The New York Times on what you can do to be more informed:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/health/protests-coronavirus.html