Honors Social Science Inquiry (HNRS-110)

As COVID-19, also referred to as the coronavirus, has spread across the world, about ninety percent of Americans are now home and social distancing according to ChangingAmerica. While being home and staying away from physical contact with others is vital to flattening the curve and overcoming the virus, being home for this long period of time can be dangerous for children and families that experience child abuse.

The article Why child welfare experts fear a spike of abuse during COVID-19  explains that Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth Texas has experienced seven children severely abused in five consecutive days whereas the hospital typically only sees fewer than ten crucial child abuse cases per year. This statistic raises red flags in the child abuse community as children may be placed in a higher risk environment for longer periods of time now that most Americans are home.

With having such a substancial life alteration due to COVID-19, many Americans have experienced anxiety, tensions, and irritability from being contained for so long. We are so used to being busy, going out, and interacting that being enclosed in our homes has caused us to panic and act abnormally. Many factors can contribute to the extra frustration experienced by parents/guardians during this time. Initially, routines are being disrupted. While children had previously been enrolled in school for most of their day, they are now extra factors in their parents/caregivers lives. Being in close quarters for longer periods of time with children can lead to annoyance and frustration. Additionally, the rise in unemployment rates has left approximately 6.6 million Americans without jobs; being unemployed can have negative effects on an individuals such as stress and irritation. These added factors into an individuals life can have negative effects on the people and children around them during this time.

For children, especially those who are victims of child abuse already, this pandemic can be mentally, physically, and emotionally draining. Initially, if a child has already been experiencing child abuse in their home, it is more likely that the child has been abused to a much larger extent since the quarantine has begun as they are stuck home with their abusers. Children who often use school or other places as their safe space no longer have that freedom or support. Because children are missing their social interaction, they can be mentally drained in their home environment and further their emotional abuse. Missing the social aspect of life also prevents outsiders from identifying signs of child abuse on a child. Typically a teacher or fellow student could notice a bruise or mark, however, now that the child is locked in their home, there is no one to identify those signs and help them.

When life is disrupted by natural disasters, war, or pandemics, cases and incidents of abuse have been shown to increase. Being home is dangerous for victims of child abuse and abusers may feel as though they hold more power now as they have control of the child 24/7. The societal shutdown caused by COVID-19 raises many red flags as child abuse cases are more likely to rise in numbers and children are placed in dangerous situations.

Guzman, Joseph. “90 Percent of Americans Now Staying Home to Prevent Coronavirus Spread.” TheHill, 27 Mar. 2020, thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/prevention-cures/489813-majority-of-americans-staying-home-as-much-as.

Santhanam, Laura. “Why Child Welfare Experts Fear a Spike of Abuse during COVID-19.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 6 Apr. 2020, www.pbs.org/newshour/health/why-child-welfare-experts-fear-a-spike-of-abuse-during-covid-19.

Harm to LGBTQ+ Just Trying to Serve their Country

Legislation and discriminatory practices that justify hate and persecution. The bans on transgender and LGBT individuals contribute to a sense of enduring discrimination, fear, and harassment for all minority individuals in the military. The stress LGBTQ+ face harms the military because it’s service members are harmed. These bans also do not support inclusiveness. It separates LGBTQ+ and prevents acceptance and toleration of all people in the military.

Healthcare

One study found a dramatic difference in health issues for LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ individuals in civilians. Due to DADT being repealed only recently, some are looking to non-service members to predict the differences in health care needs. “Studies of LGBT civilians from the general population indicate that there are important health differences between LGBT civilians and non-LGBT civilians. In civilian studies, LGBT individuals consistently show increased stress and psychological vulnerability when compared to their nonLGBT peers Specifically, LGBT civilians have higher rates of depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and substance use and abuse compared to non-LGBT individuals.”2  That being said, “When it comes to health, men are the weaker sex.” 3 One study found “Black, Hispanic, and other/multiple race veterans reported much worse health than White veterans.” 4 Factors in life, in biology, differences in socially accepted behavior and discrimination all affect the health of everyone in America. By arguing that LGBTQ+ members are more at risk for certain diseases seems weak compared to this evidence. Saying White men shouldn’t serve because they are at higher risk to “become alcoholics, or to have bladder cancer.”5 seems like a ridiculous notion to many. Every military service member can have multiple health issues, just because they are different does not mean that they will cost the military a dramatic amount of money. There are also plenty of studies done that have evidence that shows LGBTQ+ individuals have no extreme differences in medical health. This shows that whatever differences may exist are not so great that it would cause an extensive gap between LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+

Unit Cohesion

As for unit cohesion, one study found that when there is acceptance within LGBTQ+ groups there are positive results and unit trust. When there is harassment, however, it “was negatively associated with social
cohesion”(Goldbach). Instead of changing negative attitudes toward LGBTQ+, many leaders, legislators, and civilians decided LGBTQ+ individuals had no place in the military. At a glance, one can think this is a logical conclusion and that bans have a function. But, now let’s talk about women. Women have always been in the military, but in different roles than men. They were nurses, prostitutes, and washerwomen until world war 1 when women were allowed to fight.  In World War 2, there was such a need for service members, the united states allowed women to actually enlist by 1943. Women, African Americans, LGBTQ+ individuals, and any other minority in the military were just as crucial to the war efforts as their white male peers.

Conclusion

Due to the vast amount of data against the justification of LGBTQ+ bans in the military, all legislation supporting said bans should be repealed. It causes harm to the LGBTQ+ community, minorities, and the military. There is no reason LGBTQ+ individuals should be restricted and the bans cause more harm than anything.

1 Goldbach, Jeremy T., and Carl Andrew Castro. “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Service Members: Life After Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Current Psychiatry Reports, 2016. https://doi.org/ 10.1007/s11920-016-0695-0.

2/ 4 Harvard Health Publishing. “Mars vs. Venus: The Gender Gap in Health.” Harvard Health.  Accessed April 14, 2020. https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/mars-vs-venus-the-gender-gap-in-health

3 Sheehan, Connor M, Robert A Hummer, Brenda L Moore, Kimberly R Huyser, and John Sibley Butler. “Duty, Honor, Country, Disparity: Race/Ethnic Differences in Health and Disability among Male Veterans.” Population research and policy review. U.S. National Library of Medicine, December 2015. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4714796/.

You should care about the topic about immigration because without immigrants, our nation would not be the nation it is today. Immigrants from all over the world have built our country from the bottom up. Diversity makes America what it is. Hispanics, a minority group that is soon growing to become a larger group of peoples in the United States, have attributed to the success and growth of our nation. 

To settle the dispute of placing stricter border restrictions, more action on the national level would have to be taken in order to make a grand difference. However, an individual, you, have the right to vote and every vote counts. It is imperative to educate yourself on Hispanic history and to be aware of the trials faced by them throughout time. Being educated on this background will help you when the time comes to vote for the next governor, president, or any government official. It is essential to listen carefully to their campaigns and to also analyze if what they are proposing could really be done. It is important to analyze if they are trustworthy and educated people themselves before making the choice of voting for them. You can also help increase public awareness of the different resources that are available, especially regarding the second social issue meshed into the large spectrum of Hispanic immigration, that being the discrimination against Hispanic immigrants. Technology has many pros and cons, such as social media, since it can be used for beneficial purposes but it can also do lots of damage. However, in this case, you should most certainly take advantage of social media to help raise awareness about various situations, moments in history, and events that have arisen that need widespread attention in order for the spurring social issue to be solved. Additionally, partake in volunteering at organizations that support the Hispanic community! Hispanics are more vulnerable to various harms than whites. Moreover, be conscious of labels and appropriate names of Hispanics racial groups. Be careful with stereotypes, especially regarding who you assume to be an illegal immigrant or not. Last but certainly not least, be more accepting of your own background and heritage if you are Hispanic. There is strength in numbers, and the Hispanic community is growing by the day. The Hispanic community is one who deserves to be treated with human dignity and decency, just as every other racial group deserves to be.

On the local level, in our very own university, we celebrate diversity through clubs and organizations. However, even our university can take action in trying to better welcome Hispanic immigrants. As a college, we can create lounges that are designated for the Hispanic community. I know there is one by the fish bowl that is designated for the LGBTQ+ community. We can even establish clubs that are divided further to appreciate specific Hispanic groups, such as Cubans, Puerto Ricans, and so on. More events such as seminars and fiestas can be held to appreciate and celebrate the Hispanic culture. To better support the Hispanic immigrant community, we can create an office that works specifically with immigrants as well as counseling services that can serve as a safe-haven and solution for any mental health issues Hispanic immigrants may deal with due to bullying and other forms of persecution. We should found an anti-bullying pledge or contract that we are all made to sign and agree to the terms, accepting the punishments if it is violated.

Nationally, we can try to increase quotas for the different countries to welcome Hispanics. We need more acceptance regarding the ability to hold political positions as well. To try to reach a happy medium between Democrats and Republicans on the topic of placing stricter border regulations, a huge national debate should be held where this is discussed. Policies and papers should be altered to ease the process for the Hispanics, and having translators available would additionally help since that can describe more clearly how the immigration process works to them. Making sure the immigrants are updated on their status and on the status of refugee camps and if they need to be deported is equally as important since there are many stories where they travel by foot and spend fifteen years at a camp and are forced to be deported back to their home countries, having to restart their lives and form new connections.

There are millions of Hispanic organizations that help these causes such as The Committee for Hispanic Families and Children (CHFC) that was founded to advocate for Hispanics and to aid in improving their quality of life. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI), with their vision of an educated Hispanic community that actively, locally, and federally participates in taking action, aims to create the Hispanic leaders of the future. The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund protects and promotes the Latinos’ civil rights, and the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) empowers Hispanics to participate fully in American politics. These are only to name a few of the countless organizations that show love and support to the Hispanic immigrant community.[1]

Bibliography:

[1] “Latino Organizations You Need to Know.” Diversity Best Practices, 11 Sept. 2014, www.diversitybestpractices.com/news-articles/21-latino-organizations-you-need-know.

In a society that constantly changes and adapts to evolving circumstances, it is important to be aware of recent events and conscious of how to handle different matters pertaining to urgent topics.  Immigration is an increasingly popular topic for debate, and people find themselves being on either the pro-immigration stance or the anti-immigration side.  This is a problem: people should not be pinned against other human beings.  People should care about immigration because it is the foundation that formed many nations, especially the United States.  The U.S. is able to thrive on its diversity and offer so many options in so many different sectors of society as a direct result of immigration’s influences (i.e. job opportunities, education possibilities, language variation, cuisine, etc.).  People should care and want to know more about their surroundings, where they live/come from, and current events.  Many immigrant families encounter barriers that prevent them from completely immersing themselves in American culture.  Most of all, people should care about this matter because most people encounter immigrants (and know them personally) if they are not immigrants themselves.  To effect change in the way people perceive immigration and act towards it, alterations need to be made on three levels of society: the individual level, the local level (for our purpose, the RCNJ level), and the national level.

Individual Level

The first step in becoming an advocate of any social issue is becoming educated on the topic and being open-minded about all factors it involves.  Because people often base their opinions on what is depicted across the media, there are common misconceptions spread about immigrants and their backgrounds.  People can combat this by using trustworthy sources as well as becoming advocates for immigrants and the immigration process.  People can attend rallies/protests, attend marches, and sign petitions to raise awareness of the topic and to recruit others to start thinking in the same open-minded ways.  Although most movements are most effective at the national level, movements such as #MeToo begin on the individual level; once an individual speaks their truth and takes a stand, others feel empowered to do the same.  It takes on a domino effect: once a single individual takes action, others will feel empowered enough to follow in their footsteps.  Media can be a significant contributor in this, as those who feel passionately and strongly about the matter will likely reach out and try to make a difference in the way others see immigration.

Local/RCNJ Level

Above the individual level is the local level; Ramapo holds a significant amount of power in spreading awareness and acceptance throughout campus.  The school can offer courses and bring attention to immigration as well as its history in America.  While Ramapo does provide and advocate for diversity and activities celebrating different cultures, international students add a large portion of the diversity and new perspectives that are seen on campus, even though they may not necessarily be immigrants.  Colleges and universities have their own policies about accepting undocumented immigrants, so to make a difference, Ramapo can accept a wide range of immigrants no matter what their backgrounds may be (^1).  The students involved in the DREAM Act, referred to as Dreamers, are eligible to receive in-state tuition, and New Jersey and New York are both among two of the nineteen states to offer this opportunity, which is beneficial since Ramapo is in New Jersey and is close in proximity to New York (^2).  Despite the DREAM Act being a national bill, it allows colleges and universities to be an active part in undocumented students’ journeys.

National Level

Because of the complexity of immigration, the most action can be taken at the national level.  First, the US Immigrant Rights Movement is a nonviolent social movement that aims to protect immigrants from discrimination while also paving the way for undocumented immigrants to become citizens (^3).  This movement tries to grant immigrants opportunities with matters such as jobs and education and is integral in trying to give them a more fair chance in life (^4).  This social movement holds marches across different cities and states, which allows for them to raise more awareness.  All of its missions and goals can be found on their website.  While it is typical for volunteers of this movement to be of Latino descent, anyone who advocates for freedom can take action and be an ally in the movement.  Additionally, in recent years, immigration has become a hot topic for debate with lawmakers often disputing between being more strict or more lenient on immigrants, particularly those who are undocumented.  To effect change, the government can begin to become more consistent in how they manage and approach immigration matters.  These varying perspectives cause inconsistencies when passing legislation, which only makes it more difficult since regulations are changed and modified each time a new president and political party assumes office (the most recent modification being that President Trump has suspended immigration into the United States due to the coronavirus pandemic).  It would make it easier on citizens and government if media and legislation was spreading the same information, not conflicting or contradicting news.  We may be able to accomplish a trickle-down effect also, however, only if the national government is able to come to a mutual understanding in how to treat such matters.

Acceptance and advocacy of immigrants and the immigration process can be fostered at the individual level, through the local level, and all the way up to the national level.  If individuals are more tolerant and accepting, then more people will be granted opportunities.  The more people work together, the more efficient and advanced society will continue to become, so it is important to take a stand for what one believes in and see that through all the way to the national level by participating in rallies, voicing opinions, and always being civil.

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Bibliography

(Image 1 and Image 2) Semotiuk, Andy J. “What Do Immigrants Want And How Do They Get It?” Forbes. Forbes Magazine, January 30, 2020.

(^1 and ^2) “The Dream Act, DACA, and Other Policies Designed to Protect Dreamers.” American Immigration Council, September 3, 2019.

(^3 and ^4) “The US Immigrant Rights Movement (2004-Ongoing).” ICNC: International Center on Nonviolence Conflict, 2020.

Conflict Theory

Conflict theory tells us that there is an oppressor and the oppressed, like how the oppressor in American racial relations is white people and the oppressed are people of color. Within the construct of ableism, the oppressed are disabled people and the oppressors are abled people. Abled people often hold the power in society, as disabled people may often need assistance to get on with their daily lives. Because abled people hold the power to assist the disabled people, they often are able to oppress disabled people. What disability rights is especially about is having the accommodations available to help make disabled people as independent and equal to abled people as they can possibly be. However, this upset the power structure, and takes away the power abled people have over disabled people. This is why there is a push against accommodations. They are proposed as giving disabled people special advantages or treatment, when really they are simply and equalizing force. Abled people are just used to disabled people being below them, and not their equals, whether they are aware of it or not. Abled people often see disabled people, depending on their disability or condition, as less than human. By seeing disabled people as less than human, it is easier for abled people to see their oppression as a kind of benevolence, akin to being responsible for a pet or an animal.

Symbolic Interactionism

Symbolic interactionism has do with the meanings we as a society place on different objects, concepts, images, etc. Ableism is a social construct that very much has to do with how we as a society place meanings into the concept of disability, as well as visual cues of disabilities. Disability can often be very visible, and visible disability is often associated in our society and many other cultures with “brokenness.” Disabled people are considered to be inherently “broken” because of their visible difference from the average abled person. There is also the factor that disability can be visible in behavior that differs from the average abled person, or requests for assistance that the average abled person would not make. These factors can easily have disabled people labeled as social “deviants,” and this difference in social behavior can easily lead to abled people treating disabled people very differently socially as well. More can be read on this concept here. Disability in general often inspires a variety of pity, confusion, disgust, awkwardness, etc. Pity often comes from the idea that disabled people live terrible, pitiful lives and it is abled people’s responsibility to ease their suffering. This is a point pushed heavily by charities for disabilities and other conditions that are often run by abled people. Confusion and awkwardness come from the lack of representation of disabilities, so people either haven’t seen certain disabilities before or have never had an encounter with a disabled person before. Disgust comes from the previously mentioned “broken” concept. People find this physical or mental deviation from the norm to be horrifying, and will react as such. It also comes from the idea that not being an independent, “whole” person makes you less than human.

Immigration is a topic worth continuing to discuss in these blog posts because now with the preparation for the upcoming presidential election, the candidates are talking about ways to solve immigration as a social problem, convincing the United States population to vote for them. In my honors Global Awareness class, we had to watch Ai Wei Wei’s documentary called “Human Flow.” It was an eye-opening piece of art for me since it bore witness to many of the immigrants’ journey of immigrating to a new country. It mainly focused on refugees, meaning these are immigrants who do not desire to leave their country but flee it for political or economic reasons and purposes such as war, oppression, and other forms of persecution. 

He uses specific artistic techniques to make it such a moving production. Ai Wei Wei shoots with a drone to emphasize the motifs of masses and also of there being no way out. However, he secondly gets intimate and shoots closely to the immigrants, pausing for periods of time so that the audience can take the time to look at them. This technique compensates for the lack of individuality created by the first technique through filming on ground-level. The film opens and closes with aerial shots. The beginning opens with a bird flying over the ocean, which is a symbol that also appears throughout the film, one instance being the scene of an origami bird trapped in a wired fence at 0:58:38. This reminds me of Maya Angelou’s “Caged Bird” that echoes the value of human dignity through the depiction of the struggles and anger of the oppressed in contrast to the blissfulness of the free. In the beginning of the film the ocean fills the entire frame and the bird is minuscule compared to the vastness of the ocean, underscoring the immensity and omnipotence of nature, and how indifferent it is to creatures and human beings. 43 seconds later, a boat of immigrants comes into view. The boat is tiny and is kept to one side of the frame, again placing emphasis on the vastness of the ocean and of nature in general, which can sometimes pose as a trap, especially to the immigrants who have been declined a refuge. Other examples of aerial shots include 0:05:06 where their tents look ant-sized, almost looking as if it was edited using a cloning effect, and at 0:15:54 where the immigrants were entering the ship in masses of people, all of them appearing as one group; they are not individualized in this sense but through the second tactic the artist uses, he becomes more personal. One instance is from 0:07:30-0:08:38 where people of different ages and genders are filmed standing still, centered in the frame. I believe this back and forth between showing large masses of immigrants and their tents and then seeing them on a face-to-face level is to break stereotypes of all sorts that we may have against immigrants. We tend to see them as a large, invasive group entering a country, but Ai Wei Wei wants us to look at them as human beings and to stop categorizing and generalizing them.

When borders are closed, the immigrants feel like there is no way out; they dread returning home because the time they could spend at a camp can vary between months and years, causing them to have to restart their lives once they are deported back to their place of origin. Connections have been lost, and what was once familiar has become foreign. The Pakistani immigrants fleeing to Europe, for example, protested with signs and chanting in Arabic at 1:04:47, pleading to not be sent back. Some signs said “Are we not human beings? We mercy for stay please. EU-Don’t send us back to Hell.” In my research, I discovered that Cuban refugees did not want to leave either; they loved Cuba and had national pride. However, in order to find peace again, they needed to flee for a better life, and most of them did not ever wind up returning to Cuba once in the United States.

Racism and discrimination on college campuses has become a known issue in the world. There is not a campus today that can claim that they have never encountered an issue that involved some kind of racism or discrimination. Incidents are taking forms in many ways and are being expressed in a multitude of ways. Whether it be expressed through posters, hate crimes, images, or even notes left on dorm room doors, it is still happening. Addressing Racial Trauma and Hate Crimes on College Campuses, is an article that address how racism and discrimination has been on the rise over the years. The article states, “The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) defines a hate crime as a “criminal offense which is motivated, in whole or in part, by an offender’s bias(es) against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity.” Between 2011 and 2016, the NCES documented a 40 percent increase in campus hate crimes. (see Figure 1) In 2016, more than 1,000 hate crimes were committed on college campuses across the country. For years, racial bias has been the most common motivation for committing such crimes.”

The article goes on to talk about how colleges are becoming unsafe for students due to campus bias. The article states, “Therefore, hate crimes statistics cannot fully capture the pervasiveness of this dangerous ideology on college campuses. Campus bias incidents—which can include any “conduct that discriminates, stereotypes, excludes, harasses or harms anyone in [the university] community based on their identity”—are also on the rise. Between 2016 and 2018, the Anti-Defamation League documented at least 346 incidents of white supremacist propaganda on college campuses. Since 2018, the Southern Poverty Law Center has documented 434 incidents of white supremacist flyering on college campuses. Perhaps as a result, students of color are far less likely than white students to describe their campus as inclusive, and Black students in particular are more than twice as likely as white students to say the racial climate on their campus is poor.” Along with the rise of this issue, according to the article students are not able to report the issue without remaining anonymous.  The article states, “But 1 in 5 state flagship universities do not have an online bias reporting mechanism.* In other words, at least 216,000 students are currently denied the option to report these potentially traumatic experiences online with a guarantee of anonymity.” The article goes far enough to point out that while campuses are doing their best, the limited resources that they have and can provide are proving to be not enough. Campuses are unable to properly help their students because of a number of factors. The article states, “While university counseling centers are serving more students each year, many students do not utilize these resources for a variety of reasons, including long wait times, additional fees for service, and insufficient staff diversity. Universities with larger student-to-mental-health-provider ratios can often have longer waiting periods for access to non emergency mental health care. Longer waiting periods can be a significant barrier to care, especially for students of color, who are less likely to seek care in the first place. According to a new CAP analysis, the average student-to-counselor ratio among state flagship universities is approximately 1,300 to 1. The Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors (AUCCCD) reported an average student-to-counselor ratio of 1 to 1,411 from July 2017 to June 2018. While center utilization rates and counselor bandwidth may vary from institution to institution, many would benefit from additional resources and support to ensure that wait times are not a barrier to care for any student.” 

The most prominent current event going on is the Coronavirus disease pandemic, or COVID-19.  Although people find it redundant to talk about at this point since it continues to over-saturate the media causing mass hysteria and paranoia, it is important to recognize how significantly it continues to impact every individual’s life, no matter his or her geographical location, race, culture, religion, or political affiliation. The COVID-19 virus is an infectious disease in which a majority of those infected experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment.  Those with compromised immune systems (i.e. older people, diabetics, cancer patients) are more likely to develop a far more serious case of the illness and will most likely require special treatment in order to recover from the virus (^1).  The effects of this virus continue to reach different sectors of society.  As a class, we continue to spent a majority of time throughout the semester discussing issues within society as well as their prevalence in people’s lives, so it is important to acknowledge the severity and impact that this pandemic has shown on recent discussion topics.

Urbanization and Population Growth

There are conspiracy theories circulating that claim this pandemic to be a result of governments trying to depopulate their countries and regain control; however, in times of crisis, it is important to look at facts and not get carried away by emotions.  We read and discussed the different types of living areas: urban areas, suburban areas, and rural areas.  Of course, urban areas are more densely populated and more congested, so those residing in cities are most likely to see a more rapid spread of the virus, which offers one explanation as to why New York is so badly infected.  A common misconception is that suburbs are safer that cities; however, it proves not to be the case.  If people refuse to remain at home, the virus will continue to spread at a fast rate.  The benefit of quarantining in a suburb is that it is not as congested, and people’s homes tend to be more spacious, as opposed to city apartments (^2).  When surveying rural areas, people typically believe that they are not as high risk.  It is important to remember, though, “Rural populations have less means to contract it, but rural populations have less means to treat it,” (^2).  Rural residents do not have certain commodities as readily available to them.  In the unfortunate event that someone in a rural area were to contract the virus, their surrounding medical centers may lack the means and necessities to treat them.

The Environment

As many of us discussed, climate change is a real, serious issue, but not everyone shares these beliefs.  People do not take it seriously, and the same is happening with this pandemic.  Government officials and health experts urge and advise civilians to stay home, self-quarantine, and social distance themselves from others.  People do the exact opposite because they think that others following guidelines is enough to contain and stop the spread.  Although they may not be infected or may be asymptomatic, they are putting others who are compromised at risk.  Those exposed to pollution in their environments are at higher risk, “Greater exposure to air pollution has been linked to respiratory conditions such as asthma, which can increase risks of serious illness or death from the virus,” (^3).  In this case, the environment is playing a direct role in worsening the virus for many.  Despite the mass media coverage, some people are taking the subject lightly.  This virus is highly infectious and can be spread through human touch, yet there are still individuals who believe themselves to be invincible.  Minority populations are seeing the worst of COVID-19, as environmental racism is the “disproportionate impact of environmental hazards on people of color” (^4).  Being that more minority populations live in polluted areas, they are experiencing the brunt of the virus.  It is upsetting and disappointing to see government resources and essential workers exhausting all measures to keep us safe while some are worsening the conditions with reckless and selfish behavior by going out when it is not necessary, exposing themselves and others.  The connection between this and the environment is that human beings see the effects of the pandemic, yet many are hesitant and negligent enough to ignore the signs, as people do with harming the environment.  Media shows videos of how the planet is affected by pollution, waste, and toxins, but people choose to turn their cheek on these critical social issues.

Unfortunately, the issue will continue to worsen if individuals continue to not take precautions against the virus.  Life in quarantine is uneventful to say the least, but the more we comply, the quicker we can resume to our daily lives.

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Bibliography

(^2) Bliss, Laura, and Kriston Capps. “Are Suburbs Safer From Coronavirus? Probably Not.” CityLab, April 9, 2020.

(Image 1) “CDC Tests for COVID-19.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, March 9, 2020.

(^1) “Coronavirus.” World Health Organization. World Health Organization, 2020.

(Image 2 and ^4) Ettachfini, Leila. “Coronavirus Death Rates Are a Direct Result of Environmental Racism.” Vice, April 14, 2020.

(^3) Frazin, Rachel. “Experts See Worrisome Link between Coronavirus, Pollution.” TheHill. The Hill, April 13, 2020.