Thread by @broadwaybabyto

It took me years to admit I was disabled. I was scared of judgement & discrimination.

But even my worst fears didn’t come close to what I feel now. I’ve never been more scared & it’s not fear of covid. I’m afraid of the rise of eugenics, anger & where society is headed. 🧵/1

I’ve known we live in an ableist society all my life - but I underestimated the depth of hatred & lack of empathy. The pandemic ripped masks off people & revealed their true selves & far too often the “true self” was someone who couldn’t care less about helping fellow humans /2

Nowhere has this been more obvious than mask mandates. Because I was someone who needed to mask before the pandemic - I’ve had a rather unfortunate front row seat to the change in behaviour towards people who mask. /3

The worst I ever encountered in the before times was an odd glance or maybe a chuckle. After mask mandates it became sneers & threatening stares. Then the shouts of “do not comply”. Then the spitting & finally - threats of ripping the mask off my face. /4

I’m housebound and quite ill - so I only leave my home for necessary hospital visits. The fact that I’ve had more than one negative interaction when wearing my mask is truly appalling. I’m not going into places of entertainment or recreation - I’m going TO THE HOSPITAL. /5

Eventually I learned to ignore it - to steel myself against the hatred the way I’ve learned to steel myself against all the ableism in society. But things didn’t stop there. As anti-mask sentiment grew it became harder to access safe healthcare. /6

In the before times if a HCW saw my mask they almost always put one on in return - without my needing to ask. If I asked - they never said no. Since Covid I’ve only been in hospitals with mask mandates & still I’ve been scolded & accused of “anxiety” for asking HCW to mask /7

The final straw was last week when I heard that North Carolina are attempting to make wearing a medical mask in public an actual crime. When I heard that Ohio have been charging people with felonies for masking & that a patient was kicked out of an ER for requesting HCWs mask. /8

I’ve tried to be a good sport. I’ve been “just staying home” for 4.5 years. But when I can’t even access medical care safely? Then I get angry. Imagine a life where the ONLY place you ever get to go is the hospital - only to have it be the most dangerous place for you? /9

I’m already trapped in a body that no longer functions - desperately trying to maintain what little independence and health I have left. It’s not an easy existence yet I’m grateful EVERY day for what health I DO have. I don’t appreciate having to risk it to get medical care /10

When I try and advocate for masks in hospitals & clean air standards….
I’m once again told to “just stay home”. People seem to lack so much empathy that they can’t realize telling someone to stay home from the hospital is akin to telling them to die. /11

Criminalizing medical masks in public & kicking patients out of ER is akin to telling them to die. You don’t need to say the actual words - actions speak louder. Lately both words & actions have sent a very clear message. I’m expendable. A burden. And ppl don’t care if I die. /12

All of the above would be a lot for any person to cope with - let alone a person who’s extremely unwell. But I kept trying. Kept advocating. Kept sharing stories. It didn’t break me.

What broke me was the attitude of the general public in response to the mask bans. /13

Seeing so many perfectly healthy people celebrating the possibility that those of us most at risk might lose our last line of defence…That’s what broke me. It’s not silent complicity… people are reacting with glee. They see it as a comeuppance for having been forced to mask /14

We push back and once again we’re told to “just stay home”. Told we deserve it & that it’s our fault because mandates violated their autonomy. That we deserve to have ours violated in return. As though having to wear a mask is the same as forced infection with a virus. /15

As upset as I am - I will keep fighting. Because those people who are so happy about mask bans? Who don’t want us to have safe access to healthcare? They’re wrong. They don’t see it but others do & the more we shine light on this hatred the more good & kind allies we’ll get. /16

Being asked to wear a mask at the height of a global pandemic is not and was never a violation of bodily autonomy. There’s zero risk in wearing a mask. It doesn’t come with health risks and in fact offers protective benefit against diseases, allergens, smoke & more. /17

Mandates were necessary because hospitals were overwhelmed with people who were dying. Maybe instead of complaining about having to put a mask on you could be grateful it wasn’t yourself or a loved one struggling to breathe in the ICU. /18

And if wearing a mask is the most egregious thing you’ve ever been through… you should consider yourselves lucky. So many of us would LOVE to have wearing a mask be our most difficult problem. /19

Lastly - you exist in a society. In society there are rules that govern acceptable behaviour & those rules are designed to benefit the collective whole. That’s what mask mandates were. They were always going to be temporary & have long since been lifted. Let it go. /20

Mask bans on the other hand have the potential to create tremendous harm. They will cost lives. They will result in people like me being unable to access healthcare. They will result in arrests & trauma that disproportionately impact marginalized individuals. /21

Everyone saying this is about “no amnesty”, vengeance & payback need to take a long hard look in the mirror. You’re seeking vengeance against disabled & high risk ppl for a measure that was done to SAVE lives. It’s truly absurd and it needs to be called out. It needs to stop /22

To everyone else who’s having a hard week like me - I see you and my heart is with you. We will get through this together. We’ve got wonderful allies fighting with us who see this vile behaviour for what it is - escalating eugenics. We are NOT expendable. /23

So stand tall & strong and don’t let the bullies win. We have nothing to apologize for. If wearing a mask was truly that problematic for those individuals they were just as free to “just stay home” as we are. They’ve no more rights to safely access spaces than we do. /24

I’m inspired and proud of every person I see on here still fighting, still advocating & still sharing stories. You give me strength to keep going and we will make it through this. /end