Marisa von Bülow
24/03/2020
Text originally published on HuffPost Brasil
The first victim of the coronavirus in Rio de Janeiro was a maid, contaminated by her boss, who had recently arrived from abroad and did not self-isolate. The maid, who suffered from high blood pressure and diabetes but couldn't afford to lose her job, couldn't resist; the mistress is doing well.
The first death in São Paulo was that of a retired doorman, he was also of humble origin, he was also diabetic and hypertensive. As in the case of the maid from Rio, the doorman from São Paulo lived in cramped rooms, with many relatives to live with.
These cases show, unequivocally and brutally, that the virus infects everyone, but does not make us the same. In addition to those with pre-existing diseases and the elderly, the poorest are the most vulnerable.
Those who will suffer the most from the pandemic are those who do not have access to water, because of decades of sanitary neglect; those for whom talking about social isolation is a bad joke, because before being victims of the virus, they were victims of the lack of urban planning; those for whom the Welfare State is a science fiction story that takes place in a galaxy far, far away... They are the “Wretched of the Earth”, title of the famous book by Frantz Fanon, published in 1961, which denounced the violence that is born of inequality.
Civil society occupies the vacuum of the State
In the historical vacuum left by the State, small individual solidarity actions – such as giving paid time off to maids and doing your own cleaning – are not only necessary, but fundamental.
It should be something obvious, but it's not. Children of maids launched the letter “ For the lives of our mothers ”, addressed not only to the authorities, but to the whole of civil society: “when we see that our family members who are domestic workers and day laborers continue to work normally, we emphasize the emergency to meet the quarantine stipulated by the authorities and we demand paid leave”.
Other collective initiatives have appeared, launched by civil society groups active in urban peripheries. Several of these organizations have come together in a coalition to fight the pandemic. In a manifesto signed by dozens of groups from all over the country, they declare: “We, peripheral and peripheral communicators from various parts of the country, are joining efforts to collaborate with accurate information and that really manage to reach ours. We need to know how to inform… From us to ours!”.
On social media, messages using the hashtags #CoronaNasPeriferias and #COVID19NasFavelas disseminate information on how to avoid contagion, denounce the lack of water in certain locations, counter false news and disseminate photos of residents painting banners that seek to raise awareness in their communities. These initiatives show not only that the residents of the periphery need to be heard and served, but also that it is essential to have a specific communication strategy, adapted to their reality.
The poorest are showing what needs to be done and illuminating the way forward. However, they will not be able to fight the pandemic alone. They need the support of public authorities and society in general. Now.
