This #LongCovidAwarenessDay I want to say sorry. I’m sorry to everyone who’s joined the ranks of the chronically ill & disabled because our leaders, public health and fellow citizens refuse to take Covid seriously.
Those of us who were disabled before the pandemic could see this wave of chronic illness coming - and many of us have been screaming from the top of our lungs the last 4 years. Begging people not to take their health for granted & to wear a mask and protect themselves. Warning them that there are no do-overs once you become chronically ill.
Unfortunately very few people are listening - and many won’t understand the true devastation of #LongCovid until it directly impacts them. At which point it’ll be too late.
Despite seeing these waves of disability as an inevitable consequence of “let er rip” Covid strategy - one thing I did not see coming was how many people would willingly embrace not only ableism - but full on eugenics.
People in my own life who were previously kind & supportive have become cruel and angry. The masks have been ripped off. They don’t hesitate to tell me that they blame me for the restrictions placed on them in the early days of Covid - and that they will never again allow their freedoms to be infringed on in the name of protecting the vulnerable. One even went as far as to say “you’ve been sick for years - just die already.”
People who say these things don’t understand what disabled people understand all too well - your health is not a permanent state. Everyone will become disabled eventually…. Some of us earlier than others. Also many people who think they’re invulnerable are already vulnerable and don’t even know it.
Yet rather than adapting behaviour and pushing for a new normal that makes the world safe for everyone - most temporarily abled people have instead doubled down on hateful eugenics talking points and want us to stay home forever (or worse - die). It needs to stop.
Covid is airborne and we all share the air. “You do you” individualism is quite literally killing people. We need to start caring about the air we share as this will lead to a healthier society for everyone. Until then we need to mask up. It’s not hard, it’s incredibly effective & it might save someone’s life.
If you want to read more about the “friend” who told me I should “just die already”… I wrote about it & the behaviour changes I’ve noticed throughout the pandemic here: https://disabledginger.substack.com/p/just-die-already
