On my way home on the C train subway car, there was a pale-skinned baby in a stroller coughing. The baby was coughing badly every minute. The pale-skinned mother was sitting on the train seat, reading a book to the baby and her other child who was standing on the subway seat with their shoes on. Another white woman who seemed to be a stranger to them was smiling at them as if there was nothing wrong with them.
I found that mother very rude. She could have put a piece of fabric or a handkerchief on the coughing baby’s mouth as an alternative to a mask, or she could have placed the vinyl baby protector around the stroller before leaving home. Otherwise, she should have stayed home. Whatever the reasons were, she was not being careful.
I was sitting close to the mother and the baby. I could have stood up to move away from the family. However, I was tired after having worked all day, and I didn’t want to give up my seat. So, I took my cotton handkerchief out, and covered my mouth with it. As soon as I did that, people looked at me. Then I moved my eyes toward the mother and the baby as if to say that they were the reason, not me.
That was on March 6th, the day before Governor Cuomo declared a State of Emergency for New York State. I did not want to encounter such rude people again on the train during this pandemic. I started to see more people who wore face masks. However, they were still mostly Asians, and I was not brave enough to wear it on the train yet. I didn’t want to wear a face mask because I didn’t want to give an ignorant person any opportunity to put me down in any kind of way.
Sinophobia in NYC
February 4th: Asian woman with a face mask attacked by a man in Chinatown
During the early days when NYC didn’t even have anyone who’d tested positive for the coronavirus, many businesses in Chinatown suffered with decreased foot traffic. At the time, Wuhan in China was still the major affected area, and some people started to avoid going to Chinatown even in NYC. Yet, businesses were not the only victim. People were also affected by it. On February 4th, an Asian woman with a face mask was attacked by a man inside Grand Street train station in Chinatown. The suspect called the victim a “diseased bitch.”
March 10th around 10AM: Asian woman without a face mask attacked by a group of women near Koreatown
Wearing a face mask may make a person look like they are sick. So, some Asian people chose not to wear it, just like an average carefree non-Asian. However, not wearing a face mask also caused a hate crime. On March 10th, a 23-year-old Asian woman was attacked in Midtown near Koreatown for not wearing a face mask.
March 10th around 8PM: Asian man was attacked by a 13-year old boy in East Harlem
That same evening, a 59-year-old Asian man was attacked in East Harlem. The now-arrested teen also told the Asian man,”Go back to China.”
March 12th: 47-year-old Asian man with his 10-year old son was attacked by a man in Forest Hills, Queens
Two days later, an Asian man who was not wearing a face mask was attacked by another man. Before physically attacking the victim, the suspect said to him, “Where is your mask?” And called the Asian man “Chinese.”
So, whether you wear a mask or not, you can always be the next target of the hate crime just for being Asian.
March 16th: An Asian woman attacked in Flatiron, Manhattan
The list goes on. An Asian woman was spat on and had her hair pulled by a 33-year-old woman on the street in Flatiron. The 33-year-old blamed the Asian woman for “the spread of the coronavirus.”
By the way, is wearing a face mask effective?
In the beginning, there had been debates over the effectiveness of face masks against the coronavirus in the US. On February 12, Nancy Messonnier, the director of Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), commented on the effectiveness of wearing a mask during this coronavirus epidemic. She said, “CDC does not currently recommend the use of face masks for the general public. This virus is not spreading in the community.” In the early days, no one knew the consequences.
Then, on February 29, Surgeon General of the US posted an ironic message on Twitter that said, “Masks are not effective for the general public, but they need to be saved for surgeons.”
Also, an article on Forbes reported that a doctor named Eli Perencevich advised people not to wear a mask because “it may increase the risk of infection.”
Obviously, there aren’t enough masks available for everyone. And when doctors tell people not to wear them, some people listen to it whether they are right or not.
Face masks have always been used for prevention from sickness in China and Japan before the Coronavirus
Masks have already been used widely in Japan by the general public for as long as I can remember since my childhood in the 1980s. Moreover, masks seem to have become even more customary for anyone to wear since the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake caused the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant to emit possible radiation.
People in China have also been using masks to prevent getting sick from the air pollution. And since the coronavirus outbreak, people in Hubei Province are mandated to wear a face mask when they are outside.
Face masks worn in NYC
Today, I see more and more non-Asians wearing masks on streets in New York City—but it’s still only about 1 out of 30 people at most, even indoor. I’m not sure if those who wear a mask are infected, or if they are wearing it for prevention just like Asian people do.
In a city like New York where wearing a face mask is not accustomed, it’s understandable that a face mask may have a negative perception. According to an article published on March 3rd, a subway operator for MTA was told by his supervisor not to wear a mask because “it could incite panic in riders.” Eventually, a day after the State of Emergency declaration, MTA took an initiative to allow its workers to wear a mask.
Number of cases in NYS, NYC and Japan as of today
Just three days ago on March 16th, the number of Covid-19 cases in New York State had reached 950, surpassing Washington State. Yesterday, the number jumped to 2,382 cases in New York State alone. Today, it reached 4,152. In Japan, the number of cases are increasing, but slowly. There are 943 cases today, up from 889 yesterday.
Consider the size of New York compared to Japan. New York State is 54,471 square miles. That’s about a third of the whole of Japan, which is 145,937 square miles.
The coronavirus density in New York State is obviously bigger than Japan, and it’s climbing faster. And what’s more? New York City alone has 3,165 confirmed cases as of today.
I will wear a face mask next time I go out
When roughly only 1 out of 30 people is wearing a mask in my neighborhood, sometimes I feel hesitant to wear one for myself. I don’t want people to think I’m sick. People are probably not wearing one because some doctors of higher ranks have told the public not to wear it. However, I come from a different background where wearing a mask is considered to be better than nothing.
No matter what the doctors believe, I will still wear a mask. I will need it especially when I go to an indoor grocery store. And it’s an essential item if I ever have to ride on the train again during this pandemic. I should also wear it in my neighborhood to avoid those selfish gentrifiers who are jogging on a narrow sidewalk sweating and dropping droplets while breathing deeply.
Maybe the doctors who tell us not to wear a face mask don’t even know about or aren’t considering the crowded NYC streets and subways. Well, Manhattan is empty by now, but not my neighborhood in Brooklyn. There are tons of gentrifiers outside, just hanging out without moving away when people pass by. The subway is definitely a lot emptier now that many companies have already assigned their employees to work from home. However, perhaps because of that, just past Monday, there were less trains running, and that made the train I got on more crowded than I expected.
At the end of the day, I have to protect myself against both careless self-centered gentrifiers in my hood, and ignorant barbarians who physically attack Asian people.
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Face masks with polyester filtration (either tightly-woven or nonwoven). Various design outer fabric is cotton or poly-cotton depending on the style. Not considered PPE nor intended for medical care workers at this time.
Metal core nose wire included for the best fit.
Machine washable. Once you take them off, do not reuse without washing.
Face masks are available for purchase from HERE ♡
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Updates as of April 4:
CDC now recommends people to cover their faces when they are outside
On April 3rd, 2020, the day the death toll from the coronavirus in the U.S. reached 7,000, CDC finally announced that wearing cloth face coverings in public settings can reduce the risks of spreading the virus. I’m so glad that they took part in spreading the right idea. Now I won’t feel as frightened as before when I have to go grocery shopping.
As of April 4th, the total coronavirus cases in New York State surged to 113,704. There were 60,850 cases in NYC alone by the end of the day.
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Ive been making masks myself as have been told “That ain’t gonna help you none “. The truth is it’s not going to help that poor soul for the ignorance he has is greater than the brains he was born with and he’s not wearing it so he’s unprotected. Greeting from Texas!