Caring About People Who Are At Risk

I have taped a heart to my window. Scores of people in my city have done the same. It’s meant to communicate that we are thinking beyond ourselves, hoping to signal to the medical community, and others delivering essential services, that we acknowledge them; we thank them, and we care. Each evening, at precisely 7 p.m., we step out onto our decks and balconies to bang pots and hoot and holler, telling these same workers that we know what they are doing for us, while at the same time, risking their lives. It’s the least we can do—it’s the only thing we can do. The rest of the time, we hunker down, we stay occupied, and we try not to worry.

But like many other people, despite my best efforts, I give in to it at times. I worry about the usual things, my family, who I can’t see, my older relatives, who are at risk, the homeless in our city, our suddenly unemployed youth, and on and on.

This epidemic has exposed some hidden lesions in our society, gaping holes which we all knew were there, but didn’t want to see. In times like these, when a world-wide crisis threatens, the vulnerable are most in danger. Here are some who are most at risk:

Marginalized people (frequently black and brown) have higher rates of diabetes and heart disease than white people do. Now, with Covid 19 a factor, a disproportionate number of older black people are dying. This is clearly a result of economic inequality, which sets the scene for such chronic illnesses.

Older people of all races, especially those in ‘senior residences’ are highly susceptible and are dying in higher numbers. Ageist messages suggesting that the coronavirus is a disease of the old and expendable are spreading as quickly as the virus itself. Our population is already at risk from such negative attitudes. All of society suffers when its elders are marginalized and demeaned.  As Ashton Applewhite says, in her article in Changing Aging, finger-pointing is damaging and “undermines the solidarity more than ever before in human history.”

Other populations are also at risk; people in prisons, people with disabilities, people without homes, people living in poverty They are all part of our society, and our shared humanity. We only make things worse for all of us when we indulge in blaming, separating and diminishing others.

Instead, what is needed now, more than ever, is compassion—towards each other, and for ourselves. These are perilous times, and only in an atmosphere of love and understanding, will we come through it healthy and whole.

It’s a good time to remember these famous words, spoken by Mahatma Gandhi:

A true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members.