Thread by @EvanBlake17

Despite the horrific level of infections, hospitalizations and deaths among children, which #Omicron threatens to intensify even further, the entire political establishment, corporate media and the teachers unions insist that schools must stay open. 1/ wsws.org/en/articles/20…

In almost all the print and broadcast news, there is a concerted effort to disarm the population and prematurely declare the Omicron variant “milder” than previous variants of the virus. They rely on limited and initial data to make sweeping, baseless claims. 2/

While the precise severity of this latest Frankenstein monster will be shown in time, the surge of hospitalizations and warnings from scientists in South Africa indicate that Omicron will likely be as severe as other variants, if not more so due to its higher transmissibility. 3/

The spread of Omicron takes place as the #DeltaVariant is fueling the sixth global surge of the pandemic, with Europe and North America the present epicenters. Globally, ~600,000 people are officially infected and 7,000 people are dying from COVID-19 each day. 4/

Emergency measures must be taken to stop the spread of both Delta and Omicron and save millions of lives. These include the temporary closure of schools and nonessential workplaces, comprehensive testing, contact tracing, the isolation of infected patients, masking and more. 5/

Workers must fight for this program by building rank-and-file committees, independent of the unions and capitalist political parties. Only the global elimination of #COVID19 will protect children and all of society from further infections and deaths. 6/6
wsws.org/en/special/pag…