WILMINGTON, DE – In an unusually worded statement, former Vice President Joe Biden has proposed hiring at least 100,000 “culturally competent” contact tracers for the Covid-19 effort.
Undergrads: The President-elect plans to "create a U.S. Public Health Jobs Corps that would mobilize "at least 100,000" culturally competent contact tracers". How are you preparing yourself to be a critical part of this? https://t.co/bo9STaxDLe
— Ruby H.N. Nguyen, PhD, MHS (@URubyhnnguyen) November 9, 2020
In a published statement outlining Biden’s Covid-19 plan, it was stated:
“Establish a U.S. Public Health Jobs Corps to mobilize at least 100,000 Americans across the country with support from trusted local organizations in communities most at risk to perform culturally competent approaches to contact tracing and protecting at-risk populations.”
His plan doesn’t explain what “culturally competent” means, but the Institute for Global Health Sciences (IGHS) explained that contract tracers receiving training in California were educated on “cultural humility” as part of their course work.
Biden’s plan further states:
“Contact tracers ask questions related to topics that can be sensitive, including health, work, living arrangements and food resources.
Public health communications require a balance between providing clear instruction, asking productive questions and listening empathetically.
If those exposed to the coronavirus are to quarantine successfully, contact tracers must successfully strike this balance.
The balance is made even more important, and even more challenging to find, when racial, ethnic and economic diversity are at play.”
Today, I have named a COVID-19 Transition Advisory Board, comprised of distinguished public health experts, to help our transition team translate the Biden-Harris COVID-19 plan into a blueprint we can put into place as soon as @KamalaHarris and I are sworn into office.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) November 9, 2020
Spokespersons for the Institute for Global Health Sciences explained that “cultural humility became an area of important focus.”
The Hogg Foundation, a social justice group as the University of Texas at Austin directs that “cultural humility” is a preset manner of thinking in order to be more race sensitive based on a given subject:
“It is not enough to think about one’s own values, beliefs, and social position within the context of the present moment. In order to practice true cultural humility, a person must also be aware of and sensitive to historic realities like legacies of violence and oppression against certain groups of people.
For example, the Public Health Service’s Syphilis Experiment at Tuskegee serves as a tragic reminder of how African Americans have been historically deprived of adequate healthcare and have experienced abuse.”
According to covidstudentresponse.org, a medical student symposium, “cultural humility” is closely tied to empathy:
“Recognizing the disparate impact that COVID-19 has on people based on their past experiences or their current circumstances is foundational for effective communication.
Practicing cultural humility as you approach conversations around COVID-19 includes bearing witness to a person’s lived experience, recognizing the unique elements of someone’s personal experiences based on their background and culture, and acknowledging the authority that each person has over their experiences and story.
Practicing cultural humility requires looking beyond one’s own experience and approaching the experiences of others without judgment.”
The same medical journal published a set of ideals brought forth by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP):
- “A person who has previously been quarantined for a prior outbreak (e.g. SARS, Ebola).
- A person who has been the target of racism related to the pandemic.
- A person who is incarcerated and concerned about their risk of exposure.
- A person without health insurance who is concerned about the cost of potential healthcare needs.
- A person who lives paycheck-to-paycheck who is concerned about their inability to work during mandatory quarantine and ability to buy basic needs.
- A person who distrusts the medical establishment because of prior experiences.
- Persons with disabilities who rely on personal care assistants to do their grocery shopping and to pick up their medications.”
The Covid Student Response organization also posted a social justice-leaning summary of their ideas:
“In recent months, fear has bred more xenophobia and racism. How can you respond when you see these remarks waged against others or yourself?
We can look towards research on microaggressions–defined as verbal, behavioral, or institutional actions that communicate hostility or prejudice towards marginalized groups–for suggestions on how to react.
One framework on how to respond to perpetrators of microaggressions (or macroaggressions) is modified from (Sue et al., Am Psych 2019):
- Disarm the microaggression. Express disagreement, state your limit, or redirect the conversation.
- Educate the offender. Point out bias, discuss the impact of their statements, and promote empathy.
- Seek external support. Reach out to sources of support, discuss experiences with others, and report the statements if appropriate.
- Make the invisible visible. Ask for clarification. Try to see where they’re coming from.”
Joe Biden’s progressive leanings are apparent in the “culturally competent” wording of his Covid-19 plan. Let us all hope that for the sake of fighting this virus and for those impacted by it, treatment courses won’t be mired up in a sea of red tape brought on by political correctness and social justice warriors.
Washington governor says Biden will get people to wear masks at home, reconsider Thanksgiving plans
November 8, 2020
Washington, D.C.- If it becomes official and Biden is president, then be prepared to wear your mask at home.
According to Jay Inslee, Washington’s governor, Biden will institute policies to save Americans from Covid-19 by getting people to wear masks at home and to reconsider Thanksgiving. That’s right – wear your masks at home.
“…re-energize the kind of personal, moral commitment of Americans” on coronavirus “that we need right now to get people to start wearing masks at home, reconsider their dinner plans at Thanksgiving, save ourselves”. -Washington Governor Jay Inslee
According to Inslee, Biden will provide Americans with the energy they need to forge ahead with a new phase in the battle against Covid-19. His policies will provide leadership. He claims that:
“Look, we have been desperate for national leadership on this. This was like fighting World War II with a president who said, just let Connecticut fight the war and good luck.
To have a person who will actually engage the nation, not only in the economic things we have to do to distribute, in an efficient way, the vaccine, which we believe is coming.
But also, to re-energize the kind of personal, moral commitment of Americans, which is desperate, that we need right now to get people to start wearing masks at home, reconsider their dinner plans at Thanksgiving, save ourselves”.
“To have a person who will actually engage the nation, not only in the economic things we have to do to distribute, in an efficient way, the vaccine, which we believe is coming.
But also, to re-energize the kind of personal, moral commitment of Americans, which is desperate, that we need right now to get people to start wearing masks at home, reconsider their dinner plans at Thanksgiving, save ourselves”. -Washington Governor Jay Inslee
Yet, it was President Trump who banned travel from China, developed a system of testing that previously didn’t exist, organized manufacturing that encouraged both the public and private sector to create supplies, initiated the development of a vaccine, and supported businesses and employees while America strategized a reopening.
President Trump not only engaged and mobilized this nation but put in motion a vaccine that is set to be available and distributed by the end of 2020.
Regarding masks, Fauci has been an ardent supporter of instituting a federal mask mandate.
But if masks are not handled properly, they contribute to the spread of disease instead of stopping it. While many agree that masks are a key factor in stopping the spread and that they may indeed help the battle against Covid, many argue that it is unconstitutional and un-American to force individuals to do something against their free will.
According to a potential Biden administration, this would be a requirement of all Americans.
Biden’s plan is to offer nationwide free testing, develop a vaccine, provide protective supplies and offer economic support. While this might sound innovative, the problem is that this has already been happening for well over 6 months.
And while Biden is promising to accelerate the development of a vaccine, it should be noted that this vaccine process called Operation Warp Speed is already underway due to President Trump’s tireless efforts for Americans.
The plan is already in motion.
“Operation Warp Speed’s goal is to produce and deliver 300 million doses of safe and effective vaccines with the initial doses available by January 2021, as part of a broader strategy to accelerate the development, manufacturing, and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics (collectively known as countermeasures)”.
The only thing new to a potential Biden presidency is a potential federal mask mandate that he believes he has the legal authority to make happen.
The question that needs to be addressed is if Americans will willingly adhere to this policy that is going to force the country to wear masks at home.
How will such a policy be enforced? Surveillance? Fines? No details on how or what this mandate would be are available to the American public.
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