Anh Pham- Week 1
“We don’t appreciate what we have until it’s gone. Freedom is like that. It’s like air. When you have it, you don’t notice.” - Boris Yeltsin
With the death rate increasing on a daily basis, the petrifying CoronaVirus pandemic has been an eye-opening experience for me. Like Boris Yeltsin said, us humans tend to overlook our privileges, what we have, until it has been taken away. Blinded by technology, most of us were too dependent on our electronic devices and the Internet to be “entertained”. Speaking for myself, I had a bad habit of checking my phone too often, even if I were out hanging with friends. I took personal connections and human interactions for granted. Now, in self-quarantine, missing my friends and loved ones who live far away, I regret taking time spent with them with no appreciation.
I remember thinking to myself “People are just over worrying” when COVID-19 was not heavily spreading in the United States. I did not seem to comprehend how serious the disease was until multiple significant events were getting canceled, even graduation-one of the most memorable events in one’s life. In present day, various businesses are affected as they had to close down their dine-in service, basic housing supplies like toilet paper and disinfectant wipes are all cleared out in supermarkets, and one of the things that perturb me the most is innocent Asians nationwide are getting attacked and blamed for something we did not cause. For instance, the 68 year-old Asian man in San Francisco was struck on the back of his head while collecting recyclable cans to support his family for “causing” the “Chinese Virus”- that’s what racists say now when they talk about COVID-19. Reading articles on different social media platforms and seeing guiltless people of my own race having to suffer, get beaten and mistreated just because they are simply Asian, nothing angers me more, until it finally happens to me. A few weeks ago, I had a flight at Sacramento International Airport to go back home to see my family. A middle-aged Caucasian looked me up and down when I walked up and stood across from her to wait to be called to board. She rolled her eyes at me, and started to cover her nose. Unfortunate for both of us, her seat was right behind mine on the plane. My blood was boiling when I heard her whisper to her friends something about having to sit behind an Asian as I never thought I would have to experience something like this myself.
The pandemic has made me realize to treasure what I have, as well as taking diseases seriously before it is too late.
Question: The U.S Government isn't maximizing the ways to help citizens through this pandemic, such as providing essential household supplies like other countries (Taiwan, Korea, etc.). Do you think there is a reason behind this?
Question: The U.S Government isn't maximizing the ways to help citizens through this pandemic, such as providing essential household supplies like other countries (Taiwan, Korea, etc.). Do you think there is a reason behind this?
Works Cited:
- Ponzi, Emiliano. “From a Restricted Italy, an Artist's Eye on the Coronavirus.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 2 Apr. 2020, www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/03/14/an-illustrated-look-italy-now/?arc404=true.
- Kgo. “20-Year-Old Arrested after Attack on Asian Man Collecting Cans Caught on Video, SFPD Says.” ABC7 San Francisco, 28 Feb. 2020, abc7news.com/suspect-arrested-after-asian-man-attacked-in-sf-/5972116/.
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