Whose new normal? The ruse and the hope of “We're all in this together”

ABSTRACT

Belying the rhetoric of “We're all in this together,” and “COVID as the great equalizer,” the pandemic has brought into focus the “pre-existing conditions” of inequality-poverty, racism, lack of health care, lack of child care, women's double burden, and the vulnerability of the elderly, among others. The coronavirus reveals gaping inequities in the length and quality of life caused by social and economic “pre-existing conditions.” It is the great unequalizer, the promise and ruse of “We're all in this together.” The new normal for some, is the old normal for many others. © Philosophy Today