Consensus
After losing my job with the 2020 census during the Covid-19 pandemic, I decided to make a census of my own. I have been releasing a brief themed survey on a semi-regular basis to get snapshot of how people are and are not dealing with what is going on. Some survey questions stay consistent each time one is sent out; others are crafted depending on the day's circumstance. There is no set schedule for when the surveys are sent and weeks or months may pass from survey to survey. The goal is to create a kind of snapshot of what life is like in the Coronavirus Era. Like Live Journal. Or a writing project. Or like taking a temperature. Or conducting a survey. Or a participating in a collective healing ritual. Or starting an archive. Or making an escape plan.
Please email me if you have any questions, feedback, suggestions, shout outs or love notes. For now, the survey responses will be published on this website with responders' permission. If anyone would like to collaborate on creating a printed version, please get in touch.
Please email me if you have any questions, feedback, suggestions, shout outs or love notes. For now, the survey responses will be published on this website with responders' permission. If anyone would like to collaborate on creating a printed version, please get in touch.
Emily, 34
Educator Buffalo, NY
March 19, 2020
Are you caring for anyone? If yes, how?
Myself, my family, my mom. By weathering the grocery stores full of anxiety ridden people and empty shelves to provide food and medicine.
Are you politically active? If yes, how?
Hell yes. Lobbied and worked with NY Renews Coalition last year to pass the boldest climate bill in the country, the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. Currently working with small group of high school students to pass a Climate Resolution and Declare a Climate Emergency in Buffalo and Erie County.
How are you doing?
Currently I am very grateful for my warm cup of coffee, my safe apartment, my health, my friends and families health and well-being. The past week I have had wide range of emotions. Overwhelmed, saddened, fearful, hopeful, determined, confused, dumbfounded. Trying to focus on the fact we are currently safe and healthy.
What have you lost?
Jobs, a fantastic trip to Mexico, a sense of normalcy, a chartered path forward.
What have you gained?
Perspective. This is a taste of how future emergencies will be addressed, and I am eager to see how our government will continue to react to this covert threat. I do believe the global human community and our relationship with our planet will be forever different, and if we are lucky, in a positive way for us and the rest of the living earth. It’s interesting to think that we are all being asked to stop. Everything. The exact behavior Mother Earth needs to repair right now. Ironic?
Myself, my family, my mom. By weathering the grocery stores full of anxiety ridden people and empty shelves to provide food and medicine.
Are you politically active? If yes, how?
Hell yes. Lobbied and worked with NY Renews Coalition last year to pass the boldest climate bill in the country, the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. Currently working with small group of high school students to pass a Climate Resolution and Declare a Climate Emergency in Buffalo and Erie County.
How are you doing?
Currently I am very grateful for my warm cup of coffee, my safe apartment, my health, my friends and families health and well-being. The past week I have had wide range of emotions. Overwhelmed, saddened, fearful, hopeful, determined, confused, dumbfounded. Trying to focus on the fact we are currently safe and healthy.
What have you lost?
Jobs, a fantastic trip to Mexico, a sense of normalcy, a chartered path forward.
What have you gained?
Perspective. This is a taste of how future emergencies will be addressed, and I am eager to see how our government will continue to react to this covert threat. I do believe the global human community and our relationship with our planet will be forever different, and if we are lucky, in a positive way for us and the rest of the living earth. It’s interesting to think that we are all being asked to stop. Everything. The exact behavior Mother Earth needs to repair right now. Ironic?
Meg Hahn, 24
Artist Portland, ME
March 19, 2020
Is your employment affected? If yes, how?
Yes-- the 3 part time jobs I am working have all stopped meeting in person.
Job 1 is at a college. It was just announced yesterday that all classes for the rest of the semester will now be online. My job there requires me to be on campus and there's no way I can work remotely. For the initial 2 week period, it was announced that our paychecks would stay the same. I haven't heard anything yet moving forward, but do feel confident that they will keep paychecks in place.
Job 2 is at a non-profit. They have moved to working at home for this week, but no word yet about next week. I keep the same hours (9a-5p, 1x/week), and my pay is the same.
Job 3 is at a restaurant. This has been the biggest change. There's no specific date on when I will return to work, but it seems like it will be at least another week or two minimum. There's no way I could do any work remotely. My pay will significantly change because of this forced closure. I have filed for unemployment for this job (whole other story since other jobs are included in this), but don't know what the final outcome will look like.
How are you doing?
I feel fine. I love having the time off and honestly been feeling burnt out from the schedules of day to day life, so I'm really enjoying having time to catch up on creating art, reading, connecting with close and distant friend, and being less social. I feel uncertain and worried about the future of our planet in many ways, what the world will look like after this, and what the effect it will have on everyone and all living things.
Yes-- the 3 part time jobs I am working have all stopped meeting in person.
Job 1 is at a college. It was just announced yesterday that all classes for the rest of the semester will now be online. My job there requires me to be on campus and there's no way I can work remotely. For the initial 2 week period, it was announced that our paychecks would stay the same. I haven't heard anything yet moving forward, but do feel confident that they will keep paychecks in place.
Job 2 is at a non-profit. They have moved to working at home for this week, but no word yet about next week. I keep the same hours (9a-5p, 1x/week), and my pay is the same.
Job 3 is at a restaurant. This has been the biggest change. There's no specific date on when I will return to work, but it seems like it will be at least another week or two minimum. There's no way I could do any work remotely. My pay will significantly change because of this forced closure. I have filed for unemployment for this job (whole other story since other jobs are included in this), but don't know what the final outcome will look like.
How are you doing?
I feel fine. I love having the time off and honestly been feeling burnt out from the schedules of day to day life, so I'm really enjoying having time to catch up on creating art, reading, connecting with close and distant friend, and being less social. I feel uncertain and worried about the future of our planet in many ways, what the world will look like after this, and what the effect it will have on everyone and all living things.
Angus, 32
Self-Employed Troy, NY
March 19, 2020
Is your employment affected? If yes, how?
Yes. One job and a residency has been cancelled.
How are you doing?
Pretty well. On day 12 of self-isolation, have been cooking a lot, trying to stay off the screen (mostly failing at that), playing a lot of music and planning. I've been hit with the fog of this whole thing, the freeze-up of thinking ("everyone: watch what's happening at every moment!"), and the malaise that comes with that, but have been semi-successful at pausing to consider what is actually happening in my world. I'm trying to settle in to what might come from all of this. I feel lucky to be where I am. And I feel for those in less fortunate situations, and how much they must be struggling at this moment. I am trying to figure out how to engage with that inequity in real ways.
What have you lost?
Physical contact with other people, obviously, but that means all sort of intimacy. I speak physically so much of the time, and to be unable to to utter those "words" has changed me a bit. When I see people at a distance, I feel less social, more stoic. I've lost food made by anyone else, and lost the ability to feed others. I know this will return, in a few months, but for now it is a loss.
What have you gained?
A deeper appreciation for the earth and how humans are deeply enmeshed in (and subject to the whims of) the environment. I want to be in closer proximity to my food, my water, the medicinal plants that surround me. I'm starting seedlings now (I was planning to anyway, but I'm starting wayyy more than I wold have otherwise), and have been cultivating mushroom logs, planting native wildflowers for pollinators. This moment has given me a clarity of intention. I am so lucky to have the community I have here, and feel closer to them, in major ways. We (a group of about 8) are being very intentional about how to move forward through and beyond this pandemic. How do we care for one another and, as a group, for the larger world through our collective work? We are closer and that is a gift. I've also been reminded of the power and inevitability of death, and the importance of dealing with it, always. It is always there, an important part of our lives. We strive to control it, delay it, ignore or refuse it, but there is so much that has to die (I'm talking bad habits, extraction, profiting from destruction, etc) in order for other things to live.
Yes. One job and a residency has been cancelled.
How are you doing?
Pretty well. On day 12 of self-isolation, have been cooking a lot, trying to stay off the screen (mostly failing at that), playing a lot of music and planning. I've been hit with the fog of this whole thing, the freeze-up of thinking ("everyone: watch what's happening at every moment!"), and the malaise that comes with that, but have been semi-successful at pausing to consider what is actually happening in my world. I'm trying to settle in to what might come from all of this. I feel lucky to be where I am. And I feel for those in less fortunate situations, and how much they must be struggling at this moment. I am trying to figure out how to engage with that inequity in real ways.
What have you lost?
Physical contact with other people, obviously, but that means all sort of intimacy. I speak physically so much of the time, and to be unable to to utter those "words" has changed me a bit. When I see people at a distance, I feel less social, more stoic. I've lost food made by anyone else, and lost the ability to feed others. I know this will return, in a few months, but for now it is a loss.
What have you gained?
A deeper appreciation for the earth and how humans are deeply enmeshed in (and subject to the whims of) the environment. I want to be in closer proximity to my food, my water, the medicinal plants that surround me. I'm starting seedlings now (I was planning to anyway, but I'm starting wayyy more than I wold have otherwise), and have been cultivating mushroom logs, planting native wildflowers for pollinators. This moment has given me a clarity of intention. I am so lucky to have the community I have here, and feel closer to them, in major ways. We (a group of about 8) are being very intentional about how to move forward through and beyond this pandemic. How do we care for one another and, as a group, for the larger world through our collective work? We are closer and that is a gift. I've also been reminded of the power and inevitability of death, and the importance of dealing with it, always. It is always there, an important part of our lives. We strive to control it, delay it, ignore or refuse it, but there is so much that has to die (I'm talking bad habits, extraction, profiting from destruction, etc) in order for other things to live.
Meagan, 45
Art Consultant Portland, OR
March 29, 2020
How are you filling your time during quarantine?
Working, caring for baby
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
The news is brutal- ignoring it helps only mildly.
How has your consumption of media changed, if at all, during quarantine?
I enjoy Governor Cuomo like therapy.
Has your relationship to food changed? If so, how?
I feel the need to support restaurants. I’ve frozen meats on purpose.
What have you lost?
The gym as a mental health solution
What have you gained?
Solidarity
Working, caring for baby
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
The news is brutal- ignoring it helps only mildly.
How has your consumption of media changed, if at all, during quarantine?
I enjoy Governor Cuomo like therapy.
Has your relationship to food changed? If so, how?
I feel the need to support restaurants. I’ve frozen meats on purpose.
What have you lost?
The gym as a mental health solution
What have you gained?
Solidarity
Baxter Koziol, 24
Carpenter Portland, ME
March 29, 2020
How are you filling your time during quarantine?
Making blankets, learning how to make food, movies
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
Watching: Curb You Enthusiasm, King of the Hill, Comparing Magnificent, Seven, Seven Samurai, A Bug's Life, Goodtime, Beyond the Mat, Worst Cooks in America
Reading: Little White Lies: Uncut Gems issue
Listening: Talking Simpsons, How Did This Get Made?, David Byrne: Music for The Knee Plays
I watch listen or read things depending on the time of day and how it effects my productivity. Rewatching things I've already seen is good for hours of sewing. Listening to old stuff is good for cooking. Listening to new stuff is for when it's dark and I can relax for 40 minutes. New shows or movies have to be mixed in among the old ones so I don't get overwhelmed with new information. Venture out, then soften with familiarity. I'm mostly watching movies all day. Each one is decided based on the length, density, and tone of the previous one. I think about the next movie as one that will help digest the previous.
How has your consumption of media changed, if at all, during quarantine?
Not much, besides the fact that I have more time. More time equals more movies. Extra 8 hours in the day means at least 3 more movies per day.
Overall, how are you doing?
Pretty pretty pretty pretty good
Making blankets, learning how to make food, movies
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
Watching: Curb You Enthusiasm, King of the Hill, Comparing Magnificent, Seven, Seven Samurai, A Bug's Life, Goodtime, Beyond the Mat, Worst Cooks in America
Reading: Little White Lies: Uncut Gems issue
Listening: Talking Simpsons, How Did This Get Made?, David Byrne: Music for The Knee Plays
I watch listen or read things depending on the time of day and how it effects my productivity. Rewatching things I've already seen is good for hours of sewing. Listening to old stuff is good for cooking. Listening to new stuff is for when it's dark and I can relax for 40 minutes. New shows or movies have to be mixed in among the old ones so I don't get overwhelmed with new information. Venture out, then soften with familiarity. I'm mostly watching movies all day. Each one is decided based on the length, density, and tone of the previous one. I think about the next movie as one that will help digest the previous.
How has your consumption of media changed, if at all, during quarantine?
Not much, besides the fact that I have more time. More time equals more movies. Extra 8 hours in the day means at least 3 more movies per day.
Overall, how are you doing?
Pretty pretty pretty pretty good
Gee Wesley, 37
Graduate Student Red Hook, NY
March 29, 2020
How are you filling your time during quarantine?
School work.
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
Reading PDFs assigned for my curatorial MA program, re-watching The Wire, reading few recent poetry book by Tyree Daye, Danez Smith, and Dawn Lundy Martine, news reports and essays about coronavirus. Sometimes reports about coronavirus are satisfying in that they help contextualize the crisis.
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
Not so much. Maybe I'm eating more baked goods.
What have you lost?
I'm in school so I haven't lost a job, wages, or assets. I've lost the in-person classes from my program and had to postpone some curatorial projects, and likely will not fulfill the summer internship I had planned. I've lost physical interaction with friends and colleagues, the opportunity to convene in space together for celebration or companionship and the chance to see art shows and visit friends in New York.
What have you gained?
More time alone, a new sense of perspective about the precious vulnerability of society.
School work.
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
Reading PDFs assigned for my curatorial MA program, re-watching The Wire, reading few recent poetry book by Tyree Daye, Danez Smith, and Dawn Lundy Martine, news reports and essays about coronavirus. Sometimes reports about coronavirus are satisfying in that they help contextualize the crisis.
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
Not so much. Maybe I'm eating more baked goods.
What have you lost?
I'm in school so I haven't lost a job, wages, or assets. I've lost the in-person classes from my program and had to postpone some curatorial projects, and likely will not fulfill the summer internship I had planned. I've lost physical interaction with friends and colleagues, the opportunity to convene in space together for celebration or companionship and the chance to see art shows and visit friends in New York.
What have you gained?
More time alone, a new sense of perspective about the precious vulnerability of society.
Paul Myers, 35
Director's Assistant Palm Springs, CA
March 29, 2020
How are you filling your time during quarantine?
Here in the desert, we have plenty of distractions to pass the time. Croquet, cornhole, bike rides, hikes, ping pong, puzzles, outdoor movies, fires, working out, board games, playing records & general jam sessions, cooking meals & plenty of reading & writing to boot.
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
Tiger King on Netflix (sensational). West World on HBO (underwhelming). Reading: From Beirut to Jerusalem by Thomas Friedman. The World's Greatest Short Stories (published a century ago). Poetry by Leonard Cohen & Charles Bukowski. The collected short stories of Raymond Carver. Music is always on the Sonos or the record player. As eclectic as it gets, everything from classic country to the Flaming Lips to William Onyeabor to contemporary hip hop. The list is endless.
I'm learning about historic conflicts in the Middle East which is an interesting subject juxtaposed against the current backdrop of the world seemingly coming together to try & beat this pandemic. The reading takes me to another place, which provides a unique escape during quarantine. Tiger King is good for a laugh.
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
I've been eating home-cooked meals every day. I would like to support local businesses & order out on occasion, but I don't have the expendable income to throw their way right now.
Feel free to share a recipe here:
I cook by feel. Recipes are for rule followers.
What have you lost?
After Saturday night party night, I couldn't find the boxers I had been wearing but they turned up a couple days later. What a relief.
What have you gained?
I re-learned how to play croquet this week & I'm hooked.
Here in the desert, we have plenty of distractions to pass the time. Croquet, cornhole, bike rides, hikes, ping pong, puzzles, outdoor movies, fires, working out, board games, playing records & general jam sessions, cooking meals & plenty of reading & writing to boot.
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
Tiger King on Netflix (sensational). West World on HBO (underwhelming). Reading: From Beirut to Jerusalem by Thomas Friedman. The World's Greatest Short Stories (published a century ago). Poetry by Leonard Cohen & Charles Bukowski. The collected short stories of Raymond Carver. Music is always on the Sonos or the record player. As eclectic as it gets, everything from classic country to the Flaming Lips to William Onyeabor to contemporary hip hop. The list is endless.
I'm learning about historic conflicts in the Middle East which is an interesting subject juxtaposed against the current backdrop of the world seemingly coming together to try & beat this pandemic. The reading takes me to another place, which provides a unique escape during quarantine. Tiger King is good for a laugh.
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
I've been eating home-cooked meals every day. I would like to support local businesses & order out on occasion, but I don't have the expendable income to throw their way right now.
Feel free to share a recipe here:
I cook by feel. Recipes are for rule followers.
What have you lost?
After Saturday night party night, I couldn't find the boxers I had been wearing but they turned up a couple days later. What a relief.
What have you gained?
I re-learned how to play croquet this week & I'm hooked.
Luna Colt, 29
Occupation: N/A Portland, ME
March 29, 2020
How are you filling your time during quarantine?
Learning to skateboard and pretending to read.
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
I'm reading a novel by Nathan Hill called The Nix, watching tiger king, the get down, and better things. Listening to Evan and Jaron and Savage Garden LOL. Things like that. Watching TV is a great distraction and passer of the time. Watching little sitcoms have worked the best for uplifting moods. Music is also good. Reading too but I’m very easily distracted from reading.
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
I actually eat less and poop more (high anxiety).
What have you lost?
Work, coffee shops, hugs from anyone but my bf.
What have you gained?
Unemployment status and a more organized apartment.
Learning to skateboard and pretending to read.
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
I'm reading a novel by Nathan Hill called The Nix, watching tiger king, the get down, and better things. Listening to Evan and Jaron and Savage Garden LOL. Things like that. Watching TV is a great distraction and passer of the time. Watching little sitcoms have worked the best for uplifting moods. Music is also good. Reading too but I’m very easily distracted from reading.
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
I actually eat less and poop more (high anxiety).
What have you lost?
Work, coffee shops, hugs from anyone but my bf.
What have you gained?
Unemployment status and a more organized apartment.
Jennifer Scanlan, 50
Curator Oklahoma City, OK
March 29, 2020
How are you filling your time during quarantine?
Working! My work has not stopped!
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
I'm currently watching movies about art for blog posts I'm writing. Just saw four films for my next post on Art Families: Cutie and the Boxer, Without Gorky, The Meyerowitz Stories, Who Does She Think She Is. The men in these families, and especially the male artists, do not come off as great people to have in your family. I'm glad to have access to art!
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
I became much more focused on a healthy diet as a way to cope.
What have you lost?
A sense of security, and the joy I felt that my exhibition was going to be seen finally after many years of planning.
What have you gained?
Nice to spend more time with my partner. Also, there is a lot of online programming available that I would have missed if it had taken place in a physical location as originally planned, so that's been exciting!
Working! My work has not stopped!
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
I'm currently watching movies about art for blog posts I'm writing. Just saw four films for my next post on Art Families: Cutie and the Boxer, Without Gorky, The Meyerowitz Stories, Who Does She Think She Is. The men in these families, and especially the male artists, do not come off as great people to have in your family. I'm glad to have access to art!
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
I became much more focused on a healthy diet as a way to cope.
What have you lost?
A sense of security, and the joy I felt that my exhibition was going to be seen finally after many years of planning.
What have you gained?
Nice to spend more time with my partner. Also, there is a lot of online programming available that I would have missed if it had taken place in a physical location as originally planned, so that's been exciting!
Julia Whyel, 37
Student / Media Producer / DSP Portland, ME
March 29, 2020
How are you filling your time during quarantine?
Volunteering at soup kitchen, sleeping a lot, staring at my cats, AA meetings on Zoom, binging social media, not really sure where the hours are going...
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
Watching: Tiger King, Baskets, Jeopardy, Arrested Development, artist documentaries
Listening: KEXP.
It gives me something to focus on.
How has your consumption of media changed, if at all, during quarantine?
Extreme increase in social media
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
Not much change, except that I've started eating Cup Noodles a lot for the first time since I was a teenager.
Feel free to share a recipe here:
Pour boiling water in Cup Noodles
What have you lost?
My job, lots of tickets to performances, travel plans. All sense of how time functions. Literally time has zero meaning anymore.
What have you gained?
Gratitude, renewed connection to AA, decreased social inhibition
Volunteering at soup kitchen, sleeping a lot, staring at my cats, AA meetings on Zoom, binging social media, not really sure where the hours are going...
Describe how what you are reading, watching, and/or listening to affects your mood.
Watching: Tiger King, Baskets, Jeopardy, Arrested Development, artist documentaries
Listening: KEXP.
It gives me something to focus on.
How has your consumption of media changed, if at all, during quarantine?
Extreme increase in social media
Has your relationship to food change? If so, how?
Not much change, except that I've started eating Cup Noodles a lot for the first time since I was a teenager.
Feel free to share a recipe here:
Pour boiling water in Cup Noodles
What have you lost?
My job, lots of tickets to performances, travel plans. All sense of how time functions. Literally time has zero meaning anymore.
What have you gained?
Gratitude, renewed connection to AA, decreased social inhibition
Henry , 33
Graphic Designer Massachusetts
April 26, 2020
Explain how you would define "the future." Has this definition changed since the Coronavirus outbreak?
Unforeseeable / Even more so
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
The permanent destruction of natural resources. Extinction of rare species.
What injustice(s) did the pandemic reveal about contemporary American society to you?
That regardless of hardships, the elite somehow have the power to decide whether or not US citizens are allowed back into their own country or not. That the founding motto for our own country doesn't even hold true.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
Yes. Exploiting those who are corrupt while trying to educate the masses for a greater cause. Allowing for a conversation of unity to be formed.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
A more conscious world. Thoughtfulness. Education. Preparation. National F'ing health care. Jesus Christ. What's it going to take?
Overall, how are you doing?
I am doing well only because I have the privilege of having a family that can support me.
Unforeseeable / Even more so
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
The permanent destruction of natural resources. Extinction of rare species.
What injustice(s) did the pandemic reveal about contemporary American society to you?
That regardless of hardships, the elite somehow have the power to decide whether or not US citizens are allowed back into their own country or not. That the founding motto for our own country doesn't even hold true.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
Yes. Exploiting those who are corrupt while trying to educate the masses for a greater cause. Allowing for a conversation of unity to be formed.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
A more conscious world. Thoughtfulness. Education. Preparation. National F'ing health care. Jesus Christ. What's it going to take?
Overall, how are you doing?
I am doing well only because I have the privilege of having a family that can support me.
Jared Haug , 36
Lecturer at California State University Bakersfield, CA
April 26, 2020
Explain how you would define "the future." Has this definition changed since the Coronavirus outbreak?
The idea of the future (an endless chain of tomorrows) presumes continuity, stability, and the possibility of a better world. These assumptions have revealed their precarity. Increasingly I view the future in terms of debt--educational, economic, climactic, generational.
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
That the above-mentioned debt will continue to be shouldered by the poor and those most vulnerable. Buying and selling other people's debt is big business, and I worry that the financial sector will continue to capitalize upon it with little to no oversight or regulation.
What injustice(s) did the pandemic reveal about contemporary American society to you?
After decades of neoliberal economic policy eagerly promoted by both Reps and Dems, we are reaping the ramifications of mass privatization and de-regulation. The federal government has revealed itself as a mechanism for the efficient transfer of public funds to the private sector. I see this fundamental abandonment of the public/the constituency/the people as the injustice which underwrites all others.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
A a deep-seated, structural rage can only be extinguished with deep-seated, structural change.
What gives you the most hope about the future? Explain your answer.
The oft-maligned millennials, as a matter of fact. They have seen two major economic crises in 12 years, each followed by corporate bailouts and assurances that the market will self-correct. The myth of capitalist prosperity now falls on deaf ears, and I hope this leads to non-capitalist (or less-capitalist) economic forms in the immediate future. New forms, not re-forms.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
Financial criminals being held accountable for the lives they have ended and destroyed.
The idea of the future (an endless chain of tomorrows) presumes continuity, stability, and the possibility of a better world. These assumptions have revealed their precarity. Increasingly I view the future in terms of debt--educational, economic, climactic, generational.
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
That the above-mentioned debt will continue to be shouldered by the poor and those most vulnerable. Buying and selling other people's debt is big business, and I worry that the financial sector will continue to capitalize upon it with little to no oversight or regulation.
What injustice(s) did the pandemic reveal about contemporary American society to you?
After decades of neoliberal economic policy eagerly promoted by both Reps and Dems, we are reaping the ramifications of mass privatization and de-regulation. The federal government has revealed itself as a mechanism for the efficient transfer of public funds to the private sector. I see this fundamental abandonment of the public/the constituency/the people as the injustice which underwrites all others.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
A a deep-seated, structural rage can only be extinguished with deep-seated, structural change.
What gives you the most hope about the future? Explain your answer.
The oft-maligned millennials, as a matter of fact. They have seen two major economic crises in 12 years, each followed by corporate bailouts and assurances that the market will self-correct. The myth of capitalist prosperity now falls on deaf ears, and I hope this leads to non-capitalist (or less-capitalist) economic forms in the immediate future. New forms, not re-forms.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
Financial criminals being held accountable for the lives they have ended and destroyed.
Elisabeth Horan, 34
Grad Student "Cornhole" (Urbana), IL
April 26, 2020
Explain how you would define "the future." Has this definition changed since the coronavirus outbreak?
The future is now
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
We never get our rights back, things only get worse. Mask wearing is normalized which pushes for deeper IDs (chips) w/the excuse always being safe. Women/trans/black rights fade away. We are sold upgrades for our masks to help filter more and more pollution. Trump gets shot and Pence takes over and the handmaid's tale is our life.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
Using the little money I have to support artists and donate to charities. Keep tabs on my small community and let my friends and family know I think they da bomb.com
What gives you the most hope about the future? Explain your answer.
That I will have sex again some day and it will be glorious.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
Equal rights. Light Marxism?
Overall, how are you doing?
I'm fair, good, yes. I keep saying "all things considered, I'm good". It depends on the day. For me it is all mental.
The future is now
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
We never get our rights back, things only get worse. Mask wearing is normalized which pushes for deeper IDs (chips) w/the excuse always being safe. Women/trans/black rights fade away. We are sold upgrades for our masks to help filter more and more pollution. Trump gets shot and Pence takes over and the handmaid's tale is our life.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
Using the little money I have to support artists and donate to charities. Keep tabs on my small community and let my friends and family know I think they da bomb.com
What gives you the most hope about the future? Explain your answer.
That I will have sex again some day and it will be glorious.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
Equal rights. Light Marxism?
Overall, how are you doing?
I'm fair, good, yes. I keep saying "all things considered, I'm good". It depends on the day. For me it is all mental.
Vanessa Thill, 28
Occupation: Ha, what are those? Artist. Studio manager, Freelance writer Brooklyn, NY
April 26, 2020
Explain how you would define "the future." Has this definition changed since the Coronavirus outbreak?
A major uncertainty
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
The majority of independent businesses in NY will likely not reopen. People that I love (and maybe even me) will have to move away if we can't find work, can't pay rent. Everything about the way I used to live will be altered. All the bad things will continue. Rich will continue to enrich themselves. Government has already demonstrated it doesn't care if we live or die.
What injustice(s) did the pandemic reveal about contemporary American society to you?
So many things. For instance, People with the privilege of mobility now have the privilege of immobility. America runs on undocumented labor.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
Yes, everyone can help.
What gives you the most hope about the future? Explain your answer.
People's generosity. People rising to the occasion. Realizing that the overwhelm I am feeling that there is no road map for this situation means that we have to struggle together to learn and take risks and try things. This moment is struggle itself, it is the process that will perpetually fall short and perpetually strive and continue to lead us closer to liberation.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
A million things come to mind. I have very concrete ideas about how one could change land use policy in NYC. We need to change the process, and the people in charge of planning. We need to abolish the EDC, we need community-led rezoning. One "utopia" is imagining political candidates we could actually trust. But, I guess like the word utopia, that is probably not a great thing to bet on. Still, why are American politicians such absolute trash? NYC is very fractured politically, with tons of small groups. I don't think most of them will ever agree on anything, but I hope someday there could be umbrellas for pushing forward good policy. Utopia could be DSA becoming a viable 3rd party. Really though, utopia is probably the smallest scale mutual aid you could imagine. Helping your neighbor with something. I feel the feeling of utopia whenever I collaborate with someone on a larger goal, and when my community shows up and surprises me. I never take that for granted. The realistic ideal is that community ties like the one between you and your neighbor generate consciousness and understanding of shared needs and priorities, these then are acted on through non-govt groups and activities, as well as feeding into our broken political system in an attempt to steer it toward something better and more popularly determined.
A major uncertainty
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
The majority of independent businesses in NY will likely not reopen. People that I love (and maybe even me) will have to move away if we can't find work, can't pay rent. Everything about the way I used to live will be altered. All the bad things will continue. Rich will continue to enrich themselves. Government has already demonstrated it doesn't care if we live or die.
What injustice(s) did the pandemic reveal about contemporary American society to you?
So many things. For instance, People with the privilege of mobility now have the privilege of immobility. America runs on undocumented labor.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
Yes, everyone can help.
What gives you the most hope about the future? Explain your answer.
People's generosity. People rising to the occasion. Realizing that the overwhelm I am feeling that there is no road map for this situation means that we have to struggle together to learn and take risks and try things. This moment is struggle itself, it is the process that will perpetually fall short and perpetually strive and continue to lead us closer to liberation.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
A million things come to mind. I have very concrete ideas about how one could change land use policy in NYC. We need to change the process, and the people in charge of planning. We need to abolish the EDC, we need community-led rezoning. One "utopia" is imagining political candidates we could actually trust. But, I guess like the word utopia, that is probably not a great thing to bet on. Still, why are American politicians such absolute trash? NYC is very fractured politically, with tons of small groups. I don't think most of them will ever agree on anything, but I hope someday there could be umbrellas for pushing forward good policy. Utopia could be DSA becoming a viable 3rd party. Really though, utopia is probably the smallest scale mutual aid you could imagine. Helping your neighbor with something. I feel the feeling of utopia whenever I collaborate with someone on a larger goal, and when my community shows up and surprises me. I never take that for granted. The realistic ideal is that community ties like the one between you and your neighbor generate consciousness and understanding of shared needs and priorities, these then are acted on through non-govt groups and activities, as well as feeding into our broken political system in an attempt to steer it toward something better and more popularly determined.
Jeff Sheridan, 33
Artist Portland, OR
April 26, 2020
Explain how you would define "the future." Has this definition changed since the Coronavirus outbreak?
The future stopped being a mystical, miasmic place in the distance and instead came into my living room, dropped its bags and said "What's next?" The definition of the future has changed since the outbreak and subsequent shutdown, because how we perceive time has changed so much. It's slowed down, elongated, blobbed up. It's thick, unstructured, and full of potential. So, the future is a no longer a place, it's a feeling, just as the 90s have a specific feeling, or our time at school has a feeling. At first, it was anxiety, but that's giving way to an inevitability of multiple disaster scenarios, as we enter a new phase where globalism, capitalism, and climate change start creating real world effects.
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
Culture relies on certain platforms in order to effectively communicate, disseminate, and access information. I worry about the hoarding of information, destroyed free speech, a militarized police state, the destruction of the internet, and invasion from another country. Beyond that, I'm excited for change. Not deaths. But change, yes.
What injustice(s) did the pandemic reveal about contemporary American society to you?
HOOO BOY. Xenophobic slurs towards the "China Virus" before it hit here, and then how quickly certain racial and class demographics were hit by the economic shutdown. It's horrifying.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
Being as self sufficient as possible to ease the stress on our supply chains, getting out of the way, and providing food services to those who need it.
What gives you the most hope about the future? Explain your answer.
I see people like you doing things like this and it makes me pleased to know and be a part of a rich artistic community that isn't limited by distance. Also, gardening.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
A place with sweeping environmental, health, and economic reform. Term limits on all congresspeople, and the removal of our executive branch.
The future stopped being a mystical, miasmic place in the distance and instead came into my living room, dropped its bags and said "What's next?" The definition of the future has changed since the outbreak and subsequent shutdown, because how we perceive time has changed so much. It's slowed down, elongated, blobbed up. It's thick, unstructured, and full of potential. So, the future is a no longer a place, it's a feeling, just as the 90s have a specific feeling, or our time at school has a feeling. At first, it was anxiety, but that's giving way to an inevitability of multiple disaster scenarios, as we enter a new phase where globalism, capitalism, and climate change start creating real world effects.
What is your main cause of concern about the future? Explain your answer.
Culture relies on certain platforms in order to effectively communicate, disseminate, and access information. I worry about the hoarding of information, destroyed free speech, a militarized police state, the destruction of the internet, and invasion from another country. Beyond that, I'm excited for change. Not deaths. But change, yes.
What injustice(s) did the pandemic reveal about contemporary American society to you?
HOOO BOY. Xenophobic slurs towards the "China Virus" before it hit here, and then how quickly certain racial and class demographics were hit by the economic shutdown. It's horrifying.
Do you feel like you can help? Explain your reasoning.
Being as self sufficient as possible to ease the stress on our supply chains, getting out of the way, and providing food services to those who need it.
What gives you the most hope about the future? Explain your answer.
I see people like you doing things like this and it makes me pleased to know and be a part of a rich artistic community that isn't limited by distance. Also, gardening.
What does your utopia look like on the other side of the pandemic?
A place with sweeping environmental, health, and economic reform. Term limits on all congresspeople, and the removal of our executive branch.