By Maler Suresh
Right now, we are living through an extremely unique part of history. Two globally relevant events are unfolding right before our eyes. As of June 5th, 2020, there have been 6,416,828 confirmed cases of the Coronavirus, and 382,867 deaths. The United States currently has the most confirmed cases, followed by Brazil, Russia, and the UK. According to the World Health Organization, more than 100 potential COVID-19 vaccines are under scrutiny, but it is too early to discern effectiveness. In the US, vaccines are being produced immediately to save months of time that would otherwise be used waiting to see if the vaccine works. As the number of new cases and deaths begins to stabilize and pressure continues to mount over reopening, many countries are beginning to lift their stricter protective regulations.
Meanwhile, in Brazil, which now has the second highest number of confirmed cases of the virus, President Jair Bolsonaro has not yet instituted a lockdown. Hard hit countries like Spain and Italy are beginning to reopen along with Iran, India, Germany, the UK, South Korea, and New Zealand. However, the results have been mixed. In South Korea, a spike in cases led to the closing of over 250 schools. While in New Zealand, there have been zero new cases of coronavirus since May 23, and they have discharged their final coronavirus patient from the hospital.
In Australia, as with many places all over the world, leaders and authorities are struggling with how to handle the huge protests rallying in support of the Black Lives Matter movement which violate social distancing regulations.
In Australia, as with many places all over the world, leaders and authorities are struggling with how to handle the huge protests rallying in support of the Black Lives Matter movement which violate social distancing regulations. A protest planned for this coming Saturday in Sydney, Australia has been deemed illegal by the Australian Supreme Court. New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian warned that rule-breakers who attend the protest will be ‘flagrantly disregarding the [state’s] health orders,’ but more than 10,000 protesters still plan on rallying.
There are concerns about the protests turning violent like they have in America. Protests started in Minnesota on Thursday, May 28th after George Floyd, a 46 year old African-American man, was killed by a police officer who kept his knee to Floyd’s neck for around 9 minutes. Protests, both peaceful and violent, quickly broke out across America on a large scale. With them, disturbing videos of police officers using excessive force on protestors have also been released, inciting more anger and making it even clearer that the systems in place need to change. People in some countries, like the UK and Australia, are protesting in solidarity with Americans, as well as in recognition of existing flaws in their own countries.
In the UK, most of these protests have been peaceful, with attempts at maintaining social distancing. The UK Black Lives Matter Twitter account has said it is not affiliated with the protests, and is “currently discussing the implications of calling a mass march in the middle of a pandemic that is killing us the most.”
Organizers of the protests in London saying “It’s a very difficult situation, where black people are disproportionately dying of Covid-19, but black people are also disproportionately dying in the police and prisons system. People should not be made to choose between one or the other.”
Other countries, like Iran, China, and Russia, are using the United States’ mishandling of the protests as a way to point out hypocrisy. Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif tweeted #BlackLivesMatter along with an annotated version of a U.S. State Department release that criticized Tehran’s suppression of protests. The document was tweaked to apply those same criticisms to Washington’s handling of the protests in the US. China’s deputy foreign minister retweeted comparisons of protests in the US and Hong Kong, including one that said “I want to ask Speaker Pelosi and Secretary Pompeo: Should Beijing support protests in the US, like you glorified rioters in Hong Kong?” Russian state voices echoed the Chinese and Iranian narratives as well. According to Graphika, which uses artificial intelligence to analyze data from social networks, Russia, China and Iran are using the U.S. protests to “further their existing narratives.”
The Coronavirus pandemic and Black Lives Matter protests are turning points for our generation, and only with true action from all can we hope to turn in favor of the better.
