COVID-19 Pandemic: Human Take
By Dr. Kwame Nantambu
September 17, 2020Comparatively speaking, there is absolutely no doubt that African-Americans continue to bear the massive brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic up close and personal. Indeed, national statistics clearly reveal that African-Americans die 3.6 more times from the COVID-19 coronavirus than white Americans while the figure for Latinos is 2.6 more times.
By way of further human elucidation, whereas on the one hand, white Americans who have lost their jobs can apply to their former bosses and get their jobs back when the economy takes an upturn later on; on the other hand, however, it is not the same level playing field for African-Americans who have lost their lives.
In other words, African-Americans do not have the luxury to beseech his Holiness Pope Francis 1, "God's voice on earth", so as to get his Papal blessing and permission so that they can apply to their Divine Lord and Creator and get the lives of their dearly, beloved deceased family members and friends back.
Indeed, it is very interesting to note that the novel COVID-19 coronavirus has been dubbed the "magnifier of inequality" in regard to its colossal, detrimental impact/effect on African- Americans. However, the problem with that mortal conclusion is that it only focuses on human beings who occupy this planet six feet above ground.
The salient fact of the matter is that there already exist disunity, inequality, divisiveness, hatred, systemic racism plus overt police brutality, just to highlight a few, among us human beings on earth.
The bottom-line is that we are just NOT treated as equals six feet above ground. Nevertheless, when we all die and are buried six feet below ground-suddenly, there is a brand new beginning/ballgame as to how we as dead people are treated by the earth worms who are eagerly waiting for food. Earth worms are harmless invertebrates and as far as they are concerned, dead people have NO rights which they are bound to respect.
Simply put, as long as human beings are six feet below ground, the earth worms only see dead meat to eat just as the novel coronavirus only sees live human beings six feet above ground to infect and kill. In other words, COVID-19 focuses on the living; earth worms zero in on the dead. That's it.
Moreover, earth worms do not conclude/decide that since this dead person comes down in a very expensive plush gold-plated casket and maybe was a very rich, famous and powerful person that we are not going to touch him or her--- it just does NOT work that way six feet below ground.
Conversely, when a pine-box, degraded casket comes down the pike thus automatically revealing that a poor dead person is inside, the earth worms are NOT going to rush and feast/devour that dead person--- it just does NOT work that way six feet below ground.
The point that is being made here is that all dead persons are treated democratically and equally six feet below ground. As far as this writer knows, ALL deceased human beings are not only buried six feet below ground regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion, political affiliation, socio-economic status in life, etc., but that they cannot take their earthly belongings with them. They cannot fit into their casket; they must leave them six feet above ground.
What's the message here: The simple matter is as human beings we've got to see, respect, treat and regard each other as equal mortal human beings in all of our interactions 24-7-365.
Special message to white racist police officers who kill and murder innocent-unarmed African-American men: You may get " Jus-Tice" and be set free by jurors six feet above ground and live your extended lives for more than 8 years and 46 days but please be warned and be advised that when you all die and you all will surely die, and be buried six feet below ground that the earth worms will then be the final decision-makers of last resort to render real justice to you guys to the extent that they would eat your dead white bodies just as they ate the bodies of the African-American men that you guys killed and murdered. Only six feet below ground will genuine/equal justice be served.
In the final analysis, in today's troubled , divisive world, ALL lives may not matter and are not treated equally six feet above ground, however, according to the earth worms, the stark human reality is that the meat of ALL dead human beings matters and is treated/eaten equally six feet below ground. In the poignant admonition of Nelson Mandela "to deny any person their human rights (to protest) is to challenge their very humanity."
Dr. Kwame Nantambu is Professor Emeritus Kent State University.
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