How did culture shape my Covid-19 experience?
Throughout this pandemic, I have noticed and witnessed different cultures reacting and responding to several rules, regulations, guidelines, and research in a multitude of ways. I found that the people who were interested in knowing more about the virus tended to seek out new and everchanging news, and those who felt as though it didn’t ‘effect’ them carried on with their everyday lives. It stood true that people of color, those who were immunocompromised, and the elderly were always at the highest risk when considering COVID 19, but it was really intriguing to me to learn about how a variety of other cultures delt with this virus and the ramifications that came with it.
Throughout this pandemic, extensive research was put in place to learn about this virus that had control over the world. A lot of the findings had little support as much of the information gathered was new to everyone. One that remained constant throughout, was the addition of masks to our everyday lives. Some cultures, such as those residing in China, or such European countries saw wearing masks as an accepted practice and one that would benefit their overall health. Other cultures, such as those in the US, fought this mandate and found every excuse to get around it. All cultures had very similar information behind mask wearing, yet only some held steady when mandates and requirements were put in place. In addition to the mask mandate is the topic on travel bans. The US took a while to put a travel ban in and when it was enforced, it didn’t last for long. Shutting down any business that wasn’t essential led to many conflicts and disagreements, and barely kept people from traveling to where they wanted to go. Other cultures took this ban into account and did everything possible to stay in and allow this pandemic to pass. They were ordered to stay in, and they followed this and the reasoning behind it, allowing them to recover and move back to their ‘normal’ lifestyles much quicker than others.
Personally, I felt as though it was difficult to adjust to the restrictions COVID 19 put on our lives but knew it was in my best interest to follow them as closely as possible. For me, one of the hardest things was the barrier between me and my extended family. Not being able to see them for the holidays and any special occasion was very difficult but keeping them safe was my number one priority. Other cultures aside from my own, tend to gather on a weekly or even daily basis for religious or cultural reasons. I couldn’t imagine what it was like to live in those conditions having your whole life routine being adjusted away from what you’re used to. Family gatherings, dinners, holiday parties, or special celebrations were completely wiped away from our access and the ways in which different cultures had to adapt were like no other. Within my own community, I had witnessed some eye-opening events throughout this pandemic. One that stood out to me was the fact that one of the Chinese restaurants had to close in result of cultural threats focused on their business and the people managing it. Employees were receiving news that they were the cause of the spread of this virus and that just because of their race/ethnicity they were targeted to being the overall cause to something much bigger than a single person or family run business. This is appalling to me and so disgusting, but its real and it happened, and for that I cannot even fathom what others must have gone through. It is much bigger than a mask, much broader than a virus, and it is changing our lives, yet we are truly the ones who dictate how long it needs to stay.
