Editor’s note: This commentary is by Ron Jacobs, of Winooski, who is a library worker and the author of several books, most recently “Daydream Sunset: 60s Counterculture in the ’70s” and “Can We Escape the Eternal Flame?”
In the past couple of weeks as the quarantine settled into a routine, certain residents of states around the union have begun demanding in small protests that the quarantine end immediately if not sooner. Various media agencies, including The New York Times, have documented where the funding for these protests is primarily coming from. It is coming from the same groups and foundations that funded the so-called Tea Party movement of the Obama years, the pro-war movement during the height of the Iraq war, and those who lobby incessantly for the anti-worker “right to work” legislation now present in over half of the 50 states. The names of some of these funders are well known: the Koch Foundation, FreedomWorks, and unofficial elements of the Trump campaign. Their intention is to put the working people back to work so their profits will not sink further than they already have.
Fortunately, the protests in Vermont have been small. Indeed, no more than a dozen people showed up in Montpelier on April 22 to demand the state “reopen.” However, the small size of the protests does not mean that the pressure to reopen is not getting stronger by the day. From the White House to the Statehouse to City Hall, the rumblings to open up for business are growing. This is distressing. The timing is not right. There are too many unknowns.
I work in a city department in Burlington. It is not really an essential operation, since many of its services can be obtained online. Despite this, staff in this department and elsewhere in the city are being told they will begin reopening even before the May 15 date set by Gov. Phil Scott as a potential end date for the stay home order. Understandably, many staff members are nervous, if not just plain upset, about this possibility. We are assured that the opening process will be rolled out slowly, with minimal public contact at first and with protective gear supplied by the city. While this is good, the bigger questions are left unasked by the city administration and its department heads. Why should we be going back to work before universal and free testing is available? What’s the rush?
If one is to apply how things usually work in a bureaucracy, it is fair to assume that if public buildings, shops, and restaurants partially open this week or the next, won’t that mean they will open to the public soon afterwards? If so, then why not delay the first steps until testing is available. That way, the full openings will come that much later if the testing results show what most of us hope they will — that the curve has flattened and things will continue to get better in regards to the spread of Covid-19.
If people and groups who are concerned about the economic impact of the quarantine want to apply pressure on someone, it should not be on those of us who work the front lines in essential or nonessential organizations. Instead, they should be banding together with other organizations, politicians, and people to pressure the White House and Congress to do their job and help out the people of this nation — in other words, bailout those of us who aren’t billionaires. As for those who are concerned about the economic effects as small business people or government officials dependent on tax receipts for their city, state or town, demand a 50% tax on the billionaires in this country. They’ll still be richer than almost anyone reading this commentary even after they pay their tax bill.
