Here's What Went Wrong With the U.S's Approach to the Global Pandemic

I am not a medical professional or a politician. That being said, I am also not an idiot. These few months have been some of the scariest and uncertain times I think we can all agree that COVID-19 has exposed some of the United State's governments' most prominent weaknesses in regards to public health. As virus rates are on a rapid increase throughout our nation, particularly prevailing in states like Washington, California, and New York, our federal government has yet to pick up the pace in taking action. Let's evaluate, shall we?

"This will pass through, and we'll be even stronger for it." President Donald Trump seemed beyond confident as he fed the public his self-admitted viewpoints for months on end. Nothing more than a "hoax," he claimed, "One day it's like a miracle, it will disappear." Fast forward three months later, and as of Saturday, April 11, 2020, there have been at least 533,259 confirmed cases of the illness, and over 20,000 deaths in our nation alone. To top it all off, not only does our federal government have zero sense of direction, but we are now lacking in proper PPE for our dedicated health workers, unable to provide the appropriate testing for Americans, and have yet to come up with a stable and secure plan to fight this pandemic.

Quite frankly, at this point, I'm too tired to point fingers at whoever severely screwed up. All I know is that I am sick of sitting with the weight of uncertainty and fear. I am sick of watching the man in charge desensitize a problem that is stripping Americans of their sanity, a problem that has left Americans feeling scared, hopeless, and alone. In a time where we need strong leadership the most, we are instead handed misleading information, unclear communication, and not a single sense of security. I now firmly believe that his delusions are causing him to forget that he is no longer the host of his reality TV show, and every time I turn on the TV to watch him speak is yet another reminder of his lack of qualifications for this job. Someone explain to me why we let this man stand up in front of the people of the United States, and make the daily Pandemic briefings about himself? Furthermore, I would like to know why we even hear the briefings from the 73-year-old frat boy and his business degree instead of I don't know, a doctor perhaps? To put this idea more into perspective, I recommend reading an article published by The Intercept a few days ago that compared Trump's response to those of other democracies around the world. It was fascinating to see how we are almost the only country being run by a completely nescient individual .

On a more positive note, my heart is constantly warmed by all the kind gestures, big or small, filling up my timeline. I think the one thing that has comforted me during this time is the utter humility and compassion that I am seeing from people all around the world. This global pandemic has reminded us that we are all citizens of the same planet and that it is our moral responsibility to take matters into our own hands when leadership fails us. To quote the wise Michelle Obama, "when they go low, we go high."

Let this time be one of reflection and self-love. This is the time to breathe, to find your peace, to develop better habits, to cultivate a relationship with yourself that you didn't have time to develop before. Get intimate with your thoughts, cry if you need to, feel and heal. It's going to get worse before it gets better, but it's nothing we can't get through together.

Stay positive, stay kind, wash your hands, stay the f*ck home, and maybe we'll have a fighting chance. Love always, Melania