The COVID-19 experience is about several things. One of them is systemic inequality.
As a need for rebalancing became recognised and specific imbalances emerged, it became apparent how deep and broad they were. Favouritism is built into our laws, zoning, and culture, defining what is right and wrong. Social narratives evolved to articulate those aspirations:
- Canadian tolerance
- The American Dream
- It’s just a few bad apples
- The market knows best
- Government is the problem
- Democracy is “for the people”
- Mom and apple pie
- etc.
These narratives are lenses that conjure up a specific set of hopes and manipulate how we see and interpret the world and the actions of others around us. These narratives describe a place that lives in the hearts and minds of the majority who fought to retain control of the political, legal, social and cultural institutions. But for the minority they describe a place that might be unattainable, or may be unwanted. That they might be considered aspirational by a minority could position them as propaganda designed to keep “the masses” inline.
The inequalities are so pervasive, they are ingrained in everything we do. They are systemic.
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