nursingforsocialjustice

I cannot tell yet, if the celebrity postings on Instagram are projects in instilling mass hope, empathy and solidarity, or if they are projects in self-indulgence (I include myself in this reflection). I suppose, after this is all over and I look back on it, I will be able to tell. I am not sure if it is inspirational or defeating to see celebrities living their life at home, working on special projects, re-uniting with their families, sharing glimpses into their lives, when I cannot sleep at night because I am not sure if my job will exist 6 weeks from now and I feel like a parenting failure. Is it strange that the pandemic has turned into to a war of winning and losing? Is that how the human mind is able to conceptualize things to make a strategy that helps us through collective crisis?

Last night, I had to turn off the feeds of people on some of the social media sites I use. The rally cry of the underlying hate was too overwhelming. I anticipate in the next few weeks I will have to step away from social media because I think it causes more butterflies and sinking feelings in the pit of my stomach than anything. I am having trouble reconciling posts, revelling in things like death of some, while calling for empathy of death for others because I suspect the value placed on life is agreement of disagreement with personal values. I cannot reconcile the posts wishing of pain, and suffering on some, while calling for the alleviation of pain and suffering of others. I don’t know what the qualifying criteria are. And it makes me feel uneasy because I don’t think the collective historical moment we now share has made things more black and white, I suspect it makes us feel like it is. Is life a series of dichotomies with easy answers that have suddenly been revealed? Or are we all living through something, looking for something simple, tangible, digestible, to help us through something that is complex, has many unknowns and is so scary?

I wonder what the role of social media, and widespread use of certain social media sites is on solidifying values, really enabling someone to dig their heels in and say, “see, they all agree with me, if if you don’t then get the hell out” rather than creating open spaces for thoughtful exchange of ideas? In real life we are forced to interact with all kinds of people, in our workplaces, in community centres, in the grocery store, in school. In social media we can surround ourselves with people who think like us, and disconnect from those who don’t, or send one-sided messages or leave postings on the walls of those who don’t. I suspect, the pandemic will amplify the pool of people who we surround ourselves with who think like us, and distance us (socially and eventually physically) from those who do not. How is this reconciled when the social distancing is over? I don’t know, but it worries me.

At the end of this rant, I still can’t sleep because there are many thoughts in my head and I worry that the longer this pandemic keeps some of us tied to our virtual world and away from our physical one we will continue to organize stories about how the physical world will play out at the transition back.

Peace,

Michelle D.