Swine Flu and Racism
By Milehimama on May 5, 2009 in Health, Politicking
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I commented on Consent of the Governed over the weekend, in regards to the swine flu:
I’m not worried about getting sick from the swine flu (and I’m definitely not getting the vaccine whenever it comes out).
I’m worried about the mass hysteria/effects of swine flu panic.
I’m in Houston – four different school districts have shut down schools for two weeks. Kids out of school = parents not able to work = even less income/job security.
If they start closing restaurants, groceries, libraries… THAT is what is driving me to prepare as much as possible.
Another thing that could (but probably won’t) come out of this, is an escalation of racial tensions. Most of the wealthy Mexican citizens in border towns have ended up in Houston after fleeing their country. I fear that it coud get ugly if any American citizens die in Houston from the flu. The fact that the one swine flu death had gone to one of the area’s ritziest malls before his death has dominated the headlines here.
Race is something that I haven’t seen addressed in any of the news stories, commentaries, or by the talking heads. It is there, though, the elephant in the room. I think this flu could become a great divider, forcing hidden opinions out into the open to the detriment of all.
(Before I continue, perhaps you should know that “race” is a pet peeve of mine. I think the different definitions of “races” are an artificial construct by anthropologists that have nothing to do with the actuality of human beings, especially in today’s mixed world. Pigeonholing someone based on the shape of their head o
r the texture of their hair is asinine. That, my friends, is a rant for another day.)
A few observations from the Mama on the street:
Friday night, I went to a restaurant with a bunch of other moms for a night out. The conversation turned to hiring a nanny (they aren’t all SAHMS), with the advice to go down to the local Mexican market (the one where I love to buy produce) and look for women with backpacks. They’ll work cheap and they clean house, too, even if they only speak Spanish. But, of course, you’ll want to wait a few months until the swine flu is taken care of. I wonder if this conversation would have happened last month, or last year?
Saturday night, we went to the ER for preterm labor. It was crazy busy, full of people wearing masks. My nurse said it’s been like that all week, since the schools started closing. There was a comment made – by a hospital worker – that the Mexicans were all trying to get tested. I doubt I would have ever heard anything resembling that comment at any other time.
Sunday, I went grocery shopping. I discovered that there are some great deals on Mexican produce – mangoes, avocadoes, and so on. Kroger marked their mangoes down 75%. Signs were posted prominently to remind everyone to wash their produce!
Later, at the Mexican market (I call it that because you can get all of the ingredients for Mexican cuisine there, including comals, tamale wrappers, and two aisles of Goya imports), the cashier commented on my apple purchase (9 pounds) and said there was no way she was buying produce there. She mentioned she would only shop at the more expensive grocery store up the street from now on (the one that stocks Brie and Pelligrino, not pintos in bulk).
I also heard more than one comment on talk radio – on two separate stations- frustration with the swine flu name. Apparently, people think it’s a conspiracy because the H1N1 flu is not being called the Mexican Flu. Yes, there are people who feel passionately about this issue. There was lots of ranting.
There are rumbles of frustration about the school system. Last week was TAKS testing week, the big time when every kid fills in their bubbles with a no. 2 pencil and determine if the school will pass or fail, continue to get federal funding or not. The flood and the flu have interfered with the culmination of months of instruction, not to mention the hardship on parents who are scrambling to find child care.
Comments by Houston City Councilwoman are not helpful, either.
What have you heard in your neck of the woods?
Comments from old site:
I haven’t heard any racial overtones – but then again, I haven’t been anyplace either! I would not be afraid to buy anything from the local Mexican markets – not any more afraid than I am to buy lettuce from California (remember that scare?) I mean, it should be common practice to wash your produce before you eat it – it’s not like we’re not told that all the time.
You’re right, it is the elephant in the room. Every story I’ve read about swine flu cases here has mentioned that the person either was, or was not, of Latino descent. They’re one liners and people skimming may not even catch the remarks.
Swine flu is NOT a food-borne illness. What a dumbass cashier. Prejudiced against her own employer and customer base, sheesh! Also, plenty of the produce from the fancy markets is Mexican. I shop at one of the “nicer” H-E-B stores and I know a lot of their stuff is from Mexico. It’s SOP these days. And if you’re really squeamish about Mexican cooties, you can’t even shop farmer’s markets, because guess who harvests it? Yes, the brown-people contagion is everywhere!
I haven’t heard any thing along racial tones…or haven’t ‘picked’ up on it at least….I’m in Virginia and the hype hasn’t gotten ‘too’ bad here….although yesterday at Mass our Priest told us that the Richmond Dioscese was suggesting we not touch each other during the Sign of Peace…nor should we hold hands during the Our Father….and that drinking from the Chalice was optional….our Priest and Eucharistic Ministers used anti-bacterial lotion before handing out the host…..most of us ignored the ‘suggestions” and shook hand or hugged for the SOP…and held hands for the Our Father….I figure if I get sick or die because I hugged a friend or held hands with family and friends at MASS….then so be it……
It’s total craziness and it makes me disgusted. You can tell a lot about a person by the way they react to stuff like this. How did you handle the comment about the Hispanic nanny? It would have been hard for me to maintain my composure after a comment like that.
I’d never even considered these ramifications of the swine flu. It’s just completely crazy.
I think more people up here are worried about the CDC over-reacting to the flu than they are about getting the flu itself.
I think Texas – and in my case, Houston- has a particular type of “hidden racism”. It is an “us v. them” mentality, with exceptions made for all the nice Latinos that they know IRL. (This is a broad generalization, and I apologize to any Houstonians who aren’t like that).
I absolutely agree with you! I’ve been hearing some pretty idiotic, racist comments myself. It is SO disappointing.
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