Why Are Public Health Officials Being Targeted?

They Should Be Thanked

In this time of a severe pandemic which has literally changed the world as we knew it, many strange things are happening. The coronavirus scare and now the protests over police brutality against Black men with the killing of George Floyd have caused the country to be in turmoil. What had been normal life is no longer normal.

Who would have ever thought that the economy would be basically shut down except for what could be considered essential services? The world has experienced unprecedented changes to our daily lives. Hospitals and health care have been at the forefront of the daily news for several months.

One of the most essential services has been the care of sick people who are suffering from the coronavirus outbreak which has spread throughout the world. Hospitals and those who work in them have been treating thousands of patients in crowded conditions. These health care professionals and all others who work in those facilities should be thanked profusely for the work they are doing each day to save lives often at the risk of infection themselves.

There have been some demonstrations in support of the doctors, nurses, and other health care workers. Some fly overs by military airplanes have brought their service to the attention of the public. Signs of thank you have been displayed on lawns and buildings. Some people have been showing gratitude for the sacrifices being made by many people who are working diligently everyday to help and save others.

Public health officials are part of the multitude which is trying to protect the public. They are just doing their jobs in trying to make decisions for the benefit of people until this pandemic is over or controlled. Yet they are being targeted by supposedly ordinary citizens. It is alarming to think that this would be happening. That type of action has some similarities to the protests against racism which are going on in the country. People are reacting to what they feel is injustice and demanding change.

The director of a public health department in a western state was working with a family who were under quarantine due to the coronavirus which had infected a family member. The worker was required to check out a report that another member of the family had not stayed inside for the required quarantine. After doing her checking, the worker was accused of violating their civil liberties. They posted the story on social media and said they would post her address and “start shooting.” This type of behavior is totally irrational thinking.

People from around the nation in that field of work have reported that they have received similar threats made with calls to their personal phones. They are being persecuted for doing their jobs to try and keep the public safe. Some in these important lines of work have been stepping down and leaving their positions of leadership because the threats and risk are too great. There are those who are still working and are being threatened everyday. Some feel they must have armed guards protecting them as they go to work. They fear for their life.

Shutting down the economy and enforcing stay at home measures have been proven to help in controlling the spread of the virus. Still, there are some people who oppose such measures as being an infringement of their rights. They are letting their anger be known by threats to innocent people. They are having their own protests.

The protests against racism which have been going on throughout the nation to bring attention to the police brutality and unjust treatment of Black people have mostly been peaceful. There have been unfortunate cases of rioting and looting. Large groups of people are meeting together. It is difficult to social distance in those situations, but most of the people seem to be wearing masks.

Many of the people who are in favor of fully bringing businesses back and opening up the economy quickly are against the use of masks. They are protesting against orders and recommendations to wear masks in public places. With some leaders of the nation clearly against the wearing of masks, these people feel justified in their actions. They don’t like to lose their freedom of choice even though medical personnel have highly encouraged the use of masks especially where social distancing is not possible. These seem to be the type of people who are making the threats against public health workers who often must make those decisions.

The coronavirus scare has also brought out racist rants and racism against Asian Americans because people are blaming the virus problem on China. They take out their anger on anyone who is of Asian heritage. This is part of racism and hate. Too much of that is going on now.

Why are public health workers being targeted? There is no logical reason. There is a lot of hate in the world. The public health officials who are being targeted are not being persecuted for racist reasons but for decisions they needed to make for the safety of the public. It does not make sense that these officials are being targeted and given death threats. These are professional people who are just doing their jobs with the welfare of the public as their utmost concern. The action against them is totally unjustified just as racism is not justified. They should be thanked.

[Information was taken from sources easily found on the Internet]