National Geographic: How a Virus and Social Unrest Became a Test of Our Humanity

Phillip Morris

    The coronavirus has killed thousands, but it has also affected their loved ones in a different way. Cultures that used to have elaborate funeral traditions have had to scale down or remove those, and even then, it can be a comfort to have many people with you, which is also not possible. It makes it harder to deal with grief.

"The year 2020 has brought unimaginable change to the way we live, and the way we die. The dying die alone. Survivors grieve in solitude. The death ritual has changed beyond recognition."

     The pandemic is also exposing long-standing social rifts. Those who are in poverty, more than half the world population, have been hit the hardest, either due to loss of jobs, an essential job that could be dangerous, or heightened exposure to the virus. In Brazil, many infections occurred among the most vulnerable of the population, and in the US, a simultaneous battle occurred with the "Black Lives Matter" movement. 

"In viral warfare, humanity is as strong as its weakest link. Our collective survival depends on an ability to develop a far greater appreciation for the direct relationship between universal health and social justice."

In Detroit, a friendly bus driver was infected and killed by a sick passenger. It is often that our most important front-line workers are our most vulnerable. As people are also laid off, parents are worrying about feeding their kids and academic progress. A majority of parents indicated concern about and academic slide in a March poll.

"Death has placed an unforgiving mirror to our face. We’re all on this bus together."