GINTA: The last thing we want to deal with in a pandemic is selfishness

It’s not just these people and the protesters who forget their privileges but also those who choose to travel, whether within the province, inter-provincially, or internationally to warmer destinations.

Don’t get me wrong — I understand the itch to travel. We’ve all been cooped up in our own communities for a long time. But if at the beginning of the pandemic one could be forgiven for not knowing any better, that has long since changed.

Everyone knows better. Some choose not to respect the restrictions and sadly, that answers questions such as, ‘How did the new variant get into B.C.?’ Smaller communities that are usual winter destinations such as Whistler and Revelstoke have seen numbers go up because of visitors from across the country. A partial boon to the tourism industry that becomes a danger for the community at large.

We’ve also seen cases pop up in many schools around the province. Some are the result of holiday travelling. Sometimes the symptoms are visible enough to be identified. A few epidemiologists have expressed their concerns about asymptomatic cases among children though, who end up as cases in the adult population which them and their classmates come in contact with.

As if all of this was not upsetting enough, here’s an awful juxtaposition related to the pandemic. While some people here complain continuously about having to wear masks and stay home, there are countless who would not think twice about choosing this kind of ‘hardship’ and ‘oppression.’

A shocking inquiry by CBC Marketplace into how personal protective equipment (PPE) is made reveals a horrid situation found inside the biggest disposable glove factory in Malaysia. Similar conditions were found in factories in China and North Korea. It’s gloves and masks and other PPE paraphernalia, too.

Hourly wage of $3 for 12-hour workdays; no days off, ever; appalling working and living conditions for workers without any physical distancing or any health precautions. Abuse, bondage and when the virus hits, factory shutdowns due to outbreaks with thousands of people infected and who knows how many dead.

We are faced with a bitter Catch-22. We are in the midst of a pandemic and we need PPE but the reality of slavery-tainted supplies is heavy to stomach.

No matter how you turn it, it’s just painful to think that while the pandemic has wreaked havoc throughout the entire world, it has condemned so many people who were already in precarious social circumstances to even deeper hardship because the world needs PPE and it’s easy to let some things slip.

Of course, modern-day slavery should have been dealt with a long time ago, and aggressively enough to never make its way back, but we have yet a long way to go until that becomes reality.

Meanwhile, and shamefully so, here we are witnessing people willing to toss money into fines for their ridiculous and endangering-to-others behaviour or throwing lots of money into travelling that should not happen, while so many people’s lives at the other end of the world are hell because they have no rights, let alone privileges.

Yes, I find it impossible to imagine that anyone would ever complain about their freedom being infringed upon by having to put on a mask when in public places, or when asked to refrain from going anywhere unless necessary.

I hope that this revealing inquiry will mean that everyone looking to purchase PPE will not proceed further before verifying their supply chains to avoid slavery-made products.

(Also, there are plenty of Canadian companies that manufacture PPE. A simple internet search can reveal a wealth of them.)

But that is a long-haul process, I know. What I mostly wish is for anyone inclined to further protest COVID restrictions or travel as they please to think twice before doing either. Both are selfish ways to exercise privileges in times of crisis, and above all, a stark contrast to what pandemic suffering really is.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or the Jim Pattison Broadcast Group.

by Daniela Ginta

GINTA: The last thing we want to deal with in a pandemic is selfishness

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