August 10: The following article appeared in the weekend Globe and Mail. It’s by Tessa McWatt, a professor and author. She writes about the many things that we face in these uncertain times, and ruminates on how they may be made better.
“As the COVID-19 lockdown ends, what world awaits on the other side? “
“Will we return to a state of mind that says there’s not enough for us all – that state of mind that doesn’t put each other and the planet first? Will we open up to a world that seems to perpetually choose disrespect for nature, racism, extremist nationalism, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, misogyny, homophobia and many other forms of hatred?”
“The scaffolding of how we live has been duly exposed. Why would we go back?”
And later: “The hope that I’m speaking of is not about asking for more inclusion into a system that is already broken, but rather about replacing it. It’s a hope that we align our responsibility to ourselves with our responsibility to others. And it’s time for us all to engage in radical, mutual care to repair our relations with each other and the planet. As Angela Davis has said, “You have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world. And you have to do it all the time.”
The whole article resonated with me and my hopefulness that this current mess will be resolved in a way that brings us all closer together in mutual respect and opportunity, while repairing some of the damage we’ve done to our home – the earth.
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-as-the-covid-19-lockdown-ends-what-world-awaits-people/