What If . . .

After two months of social distancing and with many more months ahead of us, we now recognize that the COVID 19 pandemic marks a fundamental change in our lives. In the face of staggering losses, many are wondering if good can come out of this devastating pandemic by capitalizing on this moment of change to address some of the social problems it has helped to highlight.

Leadership expert Scott Eblin suggests that instead of figuring out how soon we can return to what we used to do, that we see this as an opportunity for reinvention. Instead of returning to our “to do” list, he writes, we could take this moment to ask, “what if?” My last post described how this enforced chrysalis could allow us to emerge with new habits that are healthier for us and the planet, giving us a real chance to avoid the climate crisis that still looms.

The pandemic has brought other social problems to the fore, including racism, economic inequality, and injustices within many industries. People of color have been disproportionally impacted by the disease, with the heaviest toll falling on African Americans. The CDC cites differences in living conditions, work situations, underlying health problems, and less access to health care – circumstances that all predate COVID 19. What if, going forward, we guarantee safe working and living environments and enact universal health care so everyone has an equal shot at staying healthy and alive?

Economic activity has been stripped down to essential jobs, many of them performed by unskilled workers who are paid little, but without whom garbage would accumulate, public spaces would not be sanitized, and we would lack necessities like food, medications, toilet paper, and face masks. Athletes and entertainers who command multi-million dollar salaries have been furloughed, but factory workers, truckers, grocery store clerks, sanitation workers, and custodians are indispensable. What if we paid people according to what we depend upon for life and not how famous they are?

For two industries in particular, this seems like a prime moment for reinvention: the meat and airline industries. Both have been the subject of news stories and government intervention, because they are seen as essential to the American way of life. However, these industries are structured in ways that keep costs low for consumers, while creating a host of problems. Both the meat and airline industries are major greenhouse gas emitters, so reinventing them would represent huge steps towards averting the climate crisis.

In a New York Times op-ed, Jonathan Safran Foer describes the recent coronavirus outbreaks in meat processing plants and summarizes the multiple problems inherent in a meat-intensive diet. Moving away from industrialized meat production would be better for the animals, the environment, farmers, and those who work in slaughterhouses and meat processing plants. The higher price of meat from small local farms would encourage us to eat less of it, which would be healthier for us.

Similarly, a smaller airline industry with less competition and capacity would mean more expensive flights. However, working from home has made us Zoom pros, and telecommunication could often replace gathering people from far places. Without cheap flights, the family road trip might return, and with it the opportunity for seeing the country at ground level and creating fonder memories than shlepping through airports together.

What if we reinvent these industries and make them more sustainable, instead of claiming that they are necessities that should be cheap and readily available, without regard to the health of industry workers or the environmental consequences? What if we treat both as luxuries enjoyed by the developed world and, accordingly, are willing to pay more and use them less often?

What if we take this pause in “business as usual” to consider the things that are broken in our society and our economy, and look for ways to reinvent them that are more equitable and reflect what is truly essential?

There are powerful forces that will fight against such changes, manipulating media to persuade us that the old systems benefit us, when they really contribute to growing economic disparity. They will tell us that such “socialist ideals” inhibit American freedoms, without acknowledging that Scandinavian and other European countries guarantee both basic human needs and essential human freedoms. But this is an election year, so what if we reinvent our broken political system and elect those who will work for the good of all, instead of special interest lobbyists?

What if we emerge from this chrysalis moment willing to reinvent the way we live, so that others can have the essentials they need to live?

What if . . .