Article Reflection No. 9 (5/14/2022)

Photo credit: The New York Times

Article: How America Lost One Million People

COVID-19 has claimed the lives of one million people. People must perceive this grave event as a warning to be more cautious and prudent. If not, when will this battle ever recede?

This article reflects on the hundreds of thousands of deaths, and emphasizes on several demographics that were more affected in this calamity than others: those unvaccinated, Hispanic, African-American, aging, and in nursing homes. According to the article, at least 429,000 people have died after all adults could receive the coronavirus vaccine. From the knowledge I have acquired through numerous articles over the past few months, this death toll is mainly from a mix of leniency (implementation of the mindset that one is invincible to COVID-19) and distrust of the government (often for valid reasons, as for minorities who had ancestors whom the government had been cruel towards). Given the decreasing cases and lower number of deaths from a month ago, or around that time, I had previously thought the vaccines had significantly decreased the amounts of deaths, too. I was astonished.

A line graph showing the number of deaths among those who are between 25 and 54 years old displays the disproportionate number of deaths in Black and Hispanic populations compared to Asian and White. In January 2021, there were about 4 times as many Hispanics who died from COVID-19 compared to white people. Between Jan. 2021 and 2022, there were more than 7 times as many African-American deaths compared to the Asian population. Various factors control the strings of this outcome, including income (lower income → limited access to healthcare), homes (crowded groups in smaller homes → quicker contamination), and vaccination (minorities → tend to have valid distrust in government based on past events). It’s a sad truth that these groups are so unfairly impacted by relatively all waves of anguish. In natural disasters too, Hispanics and Blacks face obstructions of inequality.

Describing how she felt about her social environment, 87-year-old Wyoming resident Ms. St. John stated how she “[began] to feel sidelined because of her age…the way some younger neighbors [had] declined to wear masks or refrain from large gatherings when cases were on the rise seemed to diminish the lives of those most vulnerable” (NYT 1). This is absurd. The elderly are those who have acquired a plethora of knowledge, experience, and discernment. They deserve utmost respect. If the older population feels rejected, as Ms. St. John said, the environment must adjust so that they are not regarded in such negative manners.

Nursing homes have especially been hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic. The virus prevented loved ones from visiting the elderly, with “lockdowns that were criticized…for isolating seniors in dangerous, damaging ways (NYT 1). The virus increased staff shortages, feeding fire to the worry of poor care. As The New York Times stated, over 200,000 deaths were those in nursery homes. According to a graph, vaccines sharply decreased the number of deaths in nursery homes, but April 2022 brought a new wave of mortal danger.

This article has provided a deeper insight on the 1,000,000 deaths, exposing me to multiple graphs clearly showing the sheer scale of this coronavirus toll. Because my family member has diabetes, and because I want to ensure the safety of my loved ones, I will prudently wear masks, get new boosters, distance myself from others, and steer clear of crowded gatherings (outdoors included). The last words from the article are those from a Mississippi coroner, who saw the waves of deaths with his own two eyes: “ ‘only the grace of God and [his] faith kept [him] grounded’ ” (NYT 1). I infer that the grace of God being referred to is not dying from COVID-19. The faith in Him keeps people’s heads above water in dark, difficult times and is so powerful. Let us have hope, faith, and love in each other, let us have hope, faith, and love in ourselves, and let us have hope, faith, and love in God. Amen.

(Note: Due to the various sections and confusion on whether or not I should count each spaced section of the article as one paragraph, my citations have “1” in them to represent “page 1” because the article does not have more than 1 page. Also, because there are multiple authors of this article, I used “NYT” to represent “NYT authors/journalists”.)