If you're framing the Q of how to respond to coronavirus as one of preserving human life vs. preventing economic recession, you're doing it wrong.
One of the failings of US marketplace is how little it prioritizes workers' flourishing in normal times. Don't expect a global pandemic to make that better.
Part of what needs to be clarified, though, is what we mean by the "economy." I don't trust a culture built on both consumption & wealth disparity to know what is & isn't an essential industry.
Obviously, goods & services need to continue insofar as they support our ability to survive & support human life in this crisis. In some cases, they may need to ramp up.
But we also have to face the facts that large sectors of our economy never cared about human well-being to begin with. In this sense, it's not a Q of preventing economic loss but of determining what our economy should look like going forward.
And quite frankly, I don't believe that saving "the economy" means saving corporations or getting "back to normal" on the backs of low agency, low income workers.
The relationship btwn human flourishing & economic structures is real. Human life depends on our ability to work *together* for good of all & each.
The dark truth, tho, is that US economy has never been structured this way so the appeal to save "the economy" for the good of workers falls a bit flat.
Instead, let's have a conversation that honors the relationship btwn workers & larger economic forces, including the fact that many workers need more from "the economy" than it's been giving.
Let's tell the truth about what has become clear in the last few weeks: American workers are living on margin that is only sustainable if nothing goes wrong. Many corporations only understand the value of workers in financial terms.
E.g. Companies that cut or laid off workers w/in the last week don't deserve to be saved. Companies that won't make modifications for workers' health don't deserve to be saved. People are not fungible goods.
