Essay on Covid-19: The Tragedy of the Century

Over the course of about two years, our world has collectively faced the tragedy of the century; Covid-19. Covid-19 has had many terrible effects worldwide, people are dying left and right, the mental health crisis is skyrocketing, and we’ve been left more divided than ever. It feels as if the world is falling apart, all because of one virus.

To set the tone, worldwide, there are above half a million cases a day with 10,000 deaths on average. If those numbers don’t speak loud enough for themselves, there are over 200 million cases and 4 million deaths in total. Unfortunately, these numbers are only getting worse, with new variants coming out. As of August 2021, we’ve been fighting this virus for almost 2 years, and we haven’t made much progress since the beginning of the pandemic. Currently, there is a new variant; the “Delta variant,” and it’s the worst since the beginning of the pandemic, causing a relapse in our progress. According to the CDC, “the Delta variant is highly contagious, nearly twice as contagious as previous variants.” This means the variant is spreading twice as much as the other variants spread. Numbers are surging again, and more people are being put on ventilators. Just like the beginning of the pandemic, hospitals are at capacity and health care workers are being overworked.  Not only does Covid-19 have direct effects, but there are also so many heartbreaking indirect effects. Many people around the world are facing food shortages and job shortages. This means, because of Covid, people are left with no income, which means no way of providing for their families and no way of getting their basic needs and ongoing food shortages meaning many families are left hungry or without access to healthy foods. According to the World Health Organization, ‘nearly half of the world’s 3.3 billion global workforces is at risk of losing their livelihoods,” and “tens of millions of people are at risk of falling into extreme poverty, while the number of undernourished people, currently estimated at nearly 690 million, could increase by up to 132 million by the end of the year.” These facts are painful to hear, but unfortunately a reality for too many people. 

Continuing, Covid-19 has had a huge impact on mental health. The mental health crisis’ numbers are skyrocketing and are worse than ever. Unfortunately, it’s disproportionately the youth and health care workers being affected. The number of cases has increasingly jumped compared to other years. This is because people feel alone more than ever. For almost a year and a half, things haven’t been normal. People have been told to stay home and don’t have the same human-to-human interaction they used to. Causing them to feel as if they’re all alone and stuck. The pandemic has also caused an immense amount of stress for everyone. And unfortunately, health care workers are the most stressed in these times. Every day, they have to face the reality of Covid-19, they have to go to work and see people die, or be in critical conditions. They know firsthand how bad Covid-19 is and can’t look at the world the way normal civilians can. They live in fear of Covid because they see the effects themselves. And then they have to see others not take Covid seriously, knowing how that’s going to end. They literally have the burden of the world on their shoulders. They are the ones who have to protect the world from this virus. But eventually, it becomes too much. They drain in their work. When numbers are surging, and hospitals are at capacity, like they currently are and like how they’ve been throughout these harsh months, they are the ones who have to see it and deal with it. According to the California Health Care Foundation, “roughly 3 in 10 health care workers have weighed leaving their profession. More than half are burned out. And about 6 in 10 say stress from the pandemic has harmed their mental health.” It is unimaginable the amount of stress put on health care workers. 

Adding on, Covid-19 has left us more divided than ever. Too many people are thinking of “me” instead of “we.” Unfortunately, Covid-19 and caring about the health of people has become political. Simple stuff like wearing a facemask has been politicized. One of the only things that will get us out of this crisis is vaccines, but unfortunately, people are refusing to get vaccinated because of their political opinion. Not even a genuine fear, it’s is a matter of being republican or democratic. This is due to the amount of misinformation spread by the republican party. Elected officials who are elected by the American people to do what’s best and to protect the American people are spreading lies and misinformation. They don’t make up their decision based on statistics, numbers, and science, they make them based on their parties. For example, face masks which are used to protect us and others from spreading the virus have become a political divide. People are going to the extent of calling it oppression, rioting, and harassing others. This isn’t oppressing, it’s a matter of life or death. Recently Governor Abbott of Texas and Governor DeSantis of Florida have placed a ban on mask mandates. Meaning government properties aren’t allowed to impose a mask mandate otherwise they will be fined and their funding will be taken away. These two states are one of the biggest hotspots in America, but instead of doing what’s right to keep the American people safe, they are politicizing it. This week, many schools will start, and districts are pleading with them to allow mask mandates because it’s the only thing to keep them safe since the governors took away the option of online learning. But the governors are going against science and professionals and not listening. This political divide has become deadly.

In a nutshell, Covid-19 has had many serious and painful impacts on our world. The numbers are heartbreaking, the mental health crisis is upsetting and the political divide has become too much. The only way to end this virus is to come together.