Gathering of protesters was the wrong move
Hundreds turn out for the “Reopen PA” rally while the death toll climbs from the coronavirus pandemic.
Several Republican state lawmakers attended a rally Monday at the state Capitol in Harrisburg aimed at pressuring Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses. As Cynthia Fernandez of Spotlight PA reported, “Monday’s demonstration was planned in part by Chris Dorr, an Ohio-based far-right activist who organized similar protests with his brothers in other states.”
Hundreds of protesters who turned out to Monday’s “Reopen PA” rally undermined their desired outcome by standing — largely unmasked — cheek to jowl outside the state Capitol, practically begging to be infected by the novel coronavirus.
We want the commonwealth to be able to reopen businesses soon, too. Arguing in favor of the shutdown means arguing against our own economic interests. Newspapers rely on advertising revenue from restaurants, movie theaters, retailers and other businesses. The news industry has taken a major hit because of the pandemic shutdown.
But, as painful as job losses are, they pale when compared to loss of life.
The state Department of Health announced Tuesday that 1,564 people had died from COVID-19 in Pennsylvania. Those numbers explain why so many people looked at images from Monday’s rally and shuddered.
We worried for the police officers who were forced, by duty, to shepherd the protesters.
We worried for the small group of health care workers from the Service Employees International Union who held signs reading, “I Don’t Want You in My ICU,” and “My Life Is On the Line. Go Home.”
And we worried about the rally’s public health implications. One of the rally’s speakers, Republican state Sen. Judy Ward, voiced concern about the rallygoers who weren’t wearing masks. Ward, who’s a registered nurse, was booed.
We are being asked to avoid crowds, to keep safe distances of at least 6 feet from others, for medical reasons. Not for political ones.
It’s true that the economic pain of the shutdown hasn’t been evenly distributed. Many white-collar workers can work remotely. A small business can’t make money if it isn’t allowed to open its doors to customers.
But the shutdown won’t last forever. And we can’t rush to end it prematurely. We have to get this right the first time, or we’ll face another wave of infections, another potential round of shutdowns.
And here’s the reality: While some people are sacrificing more than others, no one is sacrificing as much as the health care workers who are putting their lives on the line during this pandemic.
Doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists and other hospital employees go to work not sure what they’ll face that day or night.
How many feverish, coughing patients will be coming through the emergency department doors.
How many patients’ families will need to be told that their loved ones, suffering in isolation, may not make it.
How many patients will need to be intubated on their shift. In that procedure, a flexible breathing tube is inserted down a patient’s throat so a ventilator can help the patient breathe. Virus-laden aerosols and particles escape from the patient’s airways, putting those performing the procedure at risk. (This is one reason why personal protective equipment is so essential.)
Some hospital employees are staying apart from their families to protect them from infection. If they do go home, they strip off their scrubs in their garages or entryways and put them directly in the washing machine. They disinfect every item — keys, phone, wallet, watch — they took with them into the hospital. They don’t hug their spouses or kids until they’ve had hot showers. Surface germs can be rinsed away, but the anxiety and fear cannot.
They bear that fear and anxiety for us. They accept the lines etched onto their faces by the goggles and masks they wear to shield themselves from the virus. They shouldn’t need to bear the brunt of our irresponsibility and our disregard for public health.
We’re all in this together, we said when this all started. But we’ve come to realize that’s not completely true. Those who exploited the concerns of ordinary Pennsylvanians to stage a political rally Monday aren’t really in this crisis with them.
And those rushing to reopen Pennsylvania aren’t with the health care workers risking their lives to save others. If they were, they’d heed their warnings.