stevie 😷

Upwards of 24% of trans people have long covid. And that's just the largest percentage. Other queer people are also suffering from long covid at higher rates than the general population. It's specific because we're abandoning around a quarter (and growing) of our community for the façade of normal at pride and other events. For context, AIDS became a rallying point for activism and care when only ~10% of the gay community was affected.

It’s that time of year! 🌈

Updated COVID vaccines are mostly for preventing severe acute illness, but it modestly reduces your chances of getting COVID at all! (54% less symptomatic illness in the following 4 months, in this recent MMWR report.) Best paired with a respirator! People who always wore N95 masks in indoor public settings had *83%* reduced risk of testing positive for COVID, in this 2022 MMWR report.

COVID is still a threat. Getting sick sucks, plus your risk of long-lasting symptoms—aka long COVID—gets higher each time you're infected. Fortunately, there's a lot you can do to lower the risk of transmission! Protect your ability to party—and protest—this Pride!

Get a Booster. Like Drag Race spinoffs, new COVID variants are dropping all the time. Antibodies from your latest vax or infection wane after a few months. Get a booster matched to the latest variants, and your resistance will peak in a couple weeks!

Mask up! COVID virus spreads through the air like the smoke from a fag [British]. A well-fitting N95 mask gives great protection! More reasons to mask up: sexy and mysterious, shows community care, avoid all the other airborne diseases!

Take it outside. The more fresh air to disperse the virus, the better! Transmission is still possible, especially in a crowd, but going outdoors is a major safety update!