The Pulse of the Pandemic

In the waning weeks of January 2020, just days before the first cases of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 were reported in the United States, I picked-up the phone and called my parents in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I had been monitoring reports about a strange new disease that was raging through Wuhan, China, and wanted to speak with them about their preparedness, should this turn into a pandemic. My immediate recommendation was to buy a mask.

I remember that conversation clearly, because my mother, who is 69, remarked that she would “rather be caught dead” than be caught wearing a mask on the street. Little did she know that mask wearing would be ubiquitous by Spring.

SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 have caused an unimaginable loss of life in the United States, much of which could have been prevented. In this country alone, we have lost over 125,000 souls at the time of writing – more than all US casualties during the First World War. Rather than embrace the moment with alacrity, the Federal Government response, led by President Donald J. Trump, has been abysmal. Rather than seizing the moment, his team portrayed the disease as a non-event that would have little impact and likely just “go away.”

By all measures, the pandemic did no such thing. It is a disruptive event, and it has forced us to rethink just about every part of our lives from the way we live to the way we work. It has laid bare the incredible social and economic disparities that have lurking just beneath the service of our society.

Perhaps the most galling disparities in the US have been along racial lines. For example, in my hometown of Washington, DC, blacks and whites each make-up about 46 percent of the population, yet blacks account for 74 percent of all COVID-19 deaths.

The disease also exposed rampant ageism. COVID-19, much like any disease, is generally more lethal to people who are older - about 80 percent of all deaths are individuals over the age of 65. For reference, this mortality isn’t too far off from other communicable diseases, like the flu. However, our age-bias blinded us to the reality that this disease could cause serious and sometimes irreparable harm to younger people.

More than anything, the pandemic has forced me to reset and focus on writing my book, as well as my relationships. Rather than traveling the world to meet with clients and speak about population aging, I am doing almost everything online.

This pandemic has also allowed me to witness new perspectives and explore historical touch points that I may not have explored before. It has allowed me to be present in the zeitgeist of the time, despite being at home.

On a personal note, I left Washington this weekend with my husband for the first time in six months to visit my family in Pittsburgh. I am happy to report, after months of pandemic, my mother now happily wears a mask when she leaves home.

Bradley Schurman, Founder and CEO, Demogera