I suggest masking

2020:

i do think it's a really vital thing to do though, especially if you are someone invested in social justice and leftism, because while it's a heavy initial energy investment to learn to reckon with how shit the world is, it will give you more energy in the long run bc you will eventually reach a point of no longer having to spend so much of yourself putting up walls, ignoring covid, ignoring climate change, ignoring racism, ignoring transphobia, etc. and this doesn't mean being a doomer At All, the goal is the make the changes we want to see. and ofc the world being difficult is why it is so difficult to do. but i think we can all recognize the exponential enshittification of the world that imperialism lends itself to and reckoning with it in your daily life and claiming as much autonomy as you can is the only way out.

covid *is* a very traumatizing thing that is still ongoing and i am really sympathetic to people who don't want to think about it. i also would like to not worry about anything and hang out with my friends! lockdowns began right as i got out of a different traumatic situation. and we all lost a lot of people. but there was also this amazing energy people had for things like anti-work, becoming pro-union, becoming more environmentally conscious, etc that all got stomped out because the US government has invested so. much. money. into covid denialism. it all ties together it really does just like OP is getting at!!!!!!

there are a LOT of resources as well as ppl willing to work through distress together and comfort you in a more productive way that builds resilience if you're willing to just ask for it. i have seen covid realism be the pathway to real change for a lot of people and i think it's a really accessible place to start for anyone interested in doing real activism (AND it increases accessibility! upward spiral instead of downward! how lovely is that?) and i want to put this out there. i am also always willing to talk to people or direct people to resources and workshop solutions if you live in a small town or you're broke or anything.

(resources compiled by sp0receress and agitpropnabsurdity on IG, I just copied em to share here)

I know I only have anecdotal evidence through work but it’s bizarre as hell when you have multiple 20-22 year olds passing through with metastatic thyroid cancer? And wtf was a 21 year old doing with a non-genetic bowel cancer???

You can also reuse N95s that aren't wet or dirty several times if you properly doff them. The elastic and nosepiece will wear out before the filter medium on any blown-fiber mask. Here's a video of how to don and doff full surgical PPE (Which includes an N95)

Info from one of the largest disposable respirator manufacturers on the planet saying exactly what I just said.

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/worker-health-safety-us/covid19/my-n95/

and an unpaywalled version of a how-to for mask reuse

“To know Alice was to love her. She felt larger than life, with a generosity, ingenuity, humor, and passion for justice unlike anything I’ve ever known.” - Lisa McCorkell

Beloved disability activist Alice Wong has died at age 51. If you aren't familiar with this wonderful woman who did so much to connect countless disabled people to one another, I highly recommend checking out her work. Disability Intimacy is a personal favorite.

disabilityvisibilityproject.com (donate here)

pure individualism is a disease that kills communities, isolates individuals, and leads to things like the anti-vax movement.

you are not so important that you aren't bound by social responsibility and decency.

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