Forget politicians, we need another ‘We Are the World’

I remember being 10-yearsold in 1985, watching the video of “We Are the World” on MTV, tears streaming down my face, as all the music legends of the day (Michael Jackson, Lionel Ritchie, Bob Dylan, Tina Turner to name a few) were singing in unison for the collective purpose of raising awareness of and relief for famine in Africa.

Aside from selling over 20 million copies worldwide and raising $63 million for humanitarian causes in Africa, “We Are the World” promoted a sense of global responsibility, set an example of the beauty and effectiveness of collaboration and, most importantly, influenced people to act.

This is what we desperately need today, as we face a global pandemic and our government leaders fail to make data-based decisions or collaborate for the greater good.

Social distancing and mask wearing should not be political issues. Science tells us that masks do provide individuals some protection from the COVID virus.

Many infected people are symptomless in the first few days, so while they may not appear to be sick, they may be able to spread the virus.

A recent scientific study concluded that face masks reduce the daily transmission rate by 47%. Given this data, why wouldn’t American leaders be uniformly recommending masks?

President Trump himself refused to wear a mask publicly until July, several months into the pandemic. Even now, he is rarely seen wearing one in news briefings and political rallies.

It’s no wonder people across the nation feel emboldened to crowd together without masks to protest shutdowns. President Trump’s lack of leadership by example sends a reckless message to the Americans he is charged to protect.

Patricia Pan Connor is a freelance writer, former investment banker and private equity investor. She holds a B. A. in Economics from Brown University. She wrote this for Insidesources.com.