On June 11th, MAP and the Millennial Action Staff Association (MASA) had the pleasure of hosting Dr. Alexandre White for a virtual briefing to discuss the ongoing response to COVID-19. Dr. White is an Assistant Professor at Johns Hopkins University, where he is jointly affiliated with the Department of Sociology and the School of Medicine, and is the Associate Director for the Center for Medical Humanities & Social Medicine.
Dr. White presented to the Millennial Action Staff Association on the implications of historic infectious disease response and provided fascinating insight into the ways that policies beyond the public health space, such as housing and labor policy, can have an outsized impact on the efficacy of disease response. Dr. White brought in relevant examples from recent history, demonstrating how demonization of at-risk-communities often accompanies infectious disease outbreaks; vulnerable or non-culturally dominant communities regularly bear the brunt of blame, yet these tendencies typically hinder containment and eradication efforts as they falsely identify the source of outbreak. Dr. White offered comparisons to the current COVID-19 pandemic where the United States underwent a wave of anti-Asian sentiment in the immediate aftermath of disease spread, and urged policymakers to address the outsized impact in minority and socially-economic disadvantaged communities in the US.
Dr. White also took time to address several misconceptions and concerns that have emerged around the novel coronavirus. He highlighted that, despite an initial belief that authoritarian minded countries had more success than others in containing the virus, socially democratic minded countries that have taken ambitious but holistic steps in the fight have fared best, such as New Zealand and Iceland. Likewise, Dr. White leaned again on historical examples to demonstrate how, despite current fears of a global balkanization and rise of nationalism, international trade and cooperation have often improved in the wake of infectious disease pandemics. The nature of infectious disease requires cooperative counter-measures, and although the initial phase of governmental response has been hallmarked by blame and the pulling back of international engagement, infectious diseases simply do not abide by nationalistic beliefs and previous generations' experience of this fact has consistently inaugurated increased cooperation and coordination not just in public health, but in areas like international trade. Lastly, Dr. White provided policy recommendations to combat the current spread of COVID-19 as well as integral preventative policies which would help mitigate the impact of a future epidemic and aid those living with chronic illnesses in the United States.
The webinar finished with a brief but robust question and answer session where staffers were able to highlight some of their ongoing work and lean on Dr. White as a resource. Questions touched on the unique necessities of essential workers, the potential need for mandated quarantines for all entering the United States from abroad, the equity of vaccination testing, the polarization that has developed around the World Health Organization and the legitimate need for reform, and more.
We are thankful to Dr. White for his work and for joining the Millennial Action Staff Association! If you would like to see a recording of the webinar, or get in touch with Dr. White, please reach out to joe.greaney@millennialaction.org.