When my mother battled a life-threatening illness many years ago, my sister and I clung to every word her doctors said. When a doctor expressed what we perceived as a modicum of hope, a tsunami of relief washed over us. Relief that would vanish when yet another doctor doubted she would still be alive 24 hours later.
Ninety days in the ICU. Medicine and monitors. Fear and faith battling for prominence. But every morning, hope strode in wearing a white coat and stethoscope.
One morning, we overheard our mother’s doctors standing in the hallway talking about families’ expectations — about us.
“They think it’s like a recipe we can just put together,” lamented my mom’s primary care doctor to his colleague.
My sister and I understood in that moment that despite doctors’ medical expertise and God-like status in society, they could not guarantee the outcome of their medical interventions.
That’s the mindset we took into the 2020 coronavirus pandemic — that scientists were trying to develop answers, interventions and strategies — with varying degrees of confidence in the outcomes — in real time. We understood that our survival would depend partly on their advice and on our adherence to it, which included masking, distancing and vaccination.
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 03: Dr. Anthony Fauci, former Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, testifies before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic at the Rayburn House Office Building on June 03, 2024 in Washington, DC. The Subcommittee is holding a hearing on the findings from a fifteen month Republican-led probe of former Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony Fauci and the COVID-19 pandemic’s origins. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Now, six years later, Sen. Rand Paul continues to demonize Dr. Anthony Fauci. I contend Fauci was among the few credible voices of that era. Remember when Donald Trump, the president who has been convicted of 34 felonies, turned to Dr. Deborah Birx during a White House Coronavirus briefing and suggested UV light and ingesting a disinfectant like bleach to treat COVID-19?
Far too many Americans are still angry about the coronavirus pandemic, where they routinely ignored medical advice, spread misinformation and carried on as usual while people died.
Black Iowa News emerged during the pandemic to provide credible information to Black Iowans and document what was happening in Black communities.
Some Americans don’t remember the details accurately because they spent too much time during the pandemic whining about their rights and dismissing any medical advice they viewed as contrary to their personal freedoms and political affiliations.
Take a look back at some of Black Iowa News’ COVID-19 reporting.
UNPROTECTED: Politicized Coronavirus Pandemic Harmed Black Iowans
UNPROTECTED: Vaccination Barriers Harm Black Iowans
UNPROTECTED: Blacks Must Fight Bias in Health Care while Sick with COVID
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