(no subject)

[conuly]

https://www.metafilter.com/198935/Our-failures-here-could-last-a-generation

Selected comment quote: I, too, continue to mask, but it is getting harder and fucking harder when I’m in environments where I am literally the only person (in 10, in 100, in 1,000) wearing a mask. I continue to do it because I don’t want goddamn complications, but I’m currently doing some traveling in areas where few or no people are wearing masks.

You know, I understand this sort of comment in principle, but sometimes I hear/read stuff like that and I just think "geez, maybe more people should be autistic". Or openly LGBTQ, or religious minorities, or physically disabled, or freaking something so they can get some perspective on this "Gosh, I'm the only one wearing a mask!" thing.

Of course I also don't like to garden in the front during the day because people might see me, so let's not claim that I don't have layers. Anyway, since other people are like that about masks, that's all the more reason to wear one so that those people will say "Okay, there's somebody else, I'm not all alone here".

Comments

[sabotabby]

Well, in my experience, the same people who are masking are the autistic, queer, disabled, religious minorities, BIPOC, etc. folks. I'm three of those things and I attribute my ability to resist the peer pressure to unmask to the fact that I'm used to it.

[ioplokon]

also honestly w/o the mandates, I haven't been hassled specifically/primarily for wearing a mask anymore.

I do get anxious about it though bc 1 I was harassed earlier in the pandemic and 2 i am in a 'marked' category & get harassment for other reasons, so dislike standing out/drawing attention.

[lilysea]

I have heard stories about people being aggressively verbally harassed, and even threatened with physical violence, for wearing a mask.

I can see why that would put people off.

(I 100% support people wearing masks to avoid catching COVID, and I think anyone who hassles someone for wearing a mask is a foolish dickhead.)

[hannah]

There's times these days that I think that being autistic keeps me sane.

[profiterole_reads]

I don't care if I'm the only one, I'm still masking because I haven't caught a virus (Covid, flu, stomach bug or even a simple cold...) in 3 years and I dig that.

[the_siobhan]

Same. I used to get bronchitis every winter. This is my new normal and I will fight anybody who tries to make me go back.

[austin_dern]

Ah, yeah, I used to joke that for all my obsessive hand-washing, I would get 50 colds a year, each of them lasting three weeks, often stacked one on top of each other. Which is a bit more than I really had, but not far enough more. But since the pandemic? Nothing. A couple weeks ago I thought I was getting a fever and thought this is it, my first cold, and no: my temperature never got above 97.6 Fahrenheit.

I concede that if the pandemic were over and the Covid-19 risk comparable to what it was in October 2019, I probably wouldn't bother masking. Maybe a lighter mask, certainly not the bother of an N95. But with the world as it is? None of you need to see my mouth that much.

[the_siobhan]

I get the "Oh shit I'm the only one wearing a mask" thing, not because I worry about standing out but because it's so discouraging. It makes me hyper aware that I can't relax my guard even a little bit around people who are not even taking the most basic of precautions.

There are concerts coming up that I really want to go to - but every photo is a sea of naked faces and I just nope right out.

[maju]

I continue to mask in public indoor spaces because I am old and concerned about the after-effects of more than one bout of Covid (I had it in May last year). To be honest, although I usually notice that almost nobody else is wearing one, I actually don't feel self-conscious about it and so far, I've never been harassed for wearing one.

[hashiveinu]

You know, I understand this sort of comment in principle, but sometimes I hear/read stuff like that and I just think "geez, maybe more people should be autistic". Or openly LGBTQ, or religious minorities, or physically disabled, or freaking something so they can get some perspective on this "Gosh, I'm the only one wearing a mask!" thing.

I feel weird about being the only person wearing a mask and I think it's in part because I've been bullied for things that are more stigmatizing. I wouldn't assume that not wanting to stick out is because someone hasn't faced any real social stigma.

[silveradept]

Given the political environment of certain regions of the United States and their fervent desire to inflict their uninformed, unqualified opinions on everyone else in the country through whatever levers they can grab and yank, there's a lot of pressure going around for people to stop being anything that isn't a very specific demographic in public, with the agents of these politicians practically salivating at the opportunity to use the state monopoly on violence to enforce their worldview.

In the places where it would be most helpful to see someone existing outside that very specific worldview, there are the most threats and pressure to conform to it. That sucks.

I live somewhere that seems okay so far with letting masking be what it is. And I have very good reasons to keep masking. But it can be disheartening to see so many people making decisions about risks and probabilities that increase the risks to other people who have to be more cautious.