CURRENT AFFAIRS DISCUSSION GROUP: CORONAVIRUS, MARKETS AND INEQUALITY
May 21, 2020, from 3:00pm to 4:30pm
In our first virtual meeting we will be discussing the wider social implications of COVID-19. The current pandemic and lockdown measures have meant loss of much or all of their income for many, particularly in the case of low-paid workers/marginalised sectors of society who are already suffering structural disparities. The “precariat” – those living in precarious situations- now refers not just to those living in or below poverty but includes as well masses of ordinary workers.
In the US it is said that your zip code is a main predictor of your future health outcome. In the UK and across several states in the US, black people/ethnic minorities figure largely in the number of deaths from Covid-19, mainly because of where and how they live. As many have said, the virus doesn’t discriminate but the system does.
COVID-19 also brings out the undeniable global interconnectedness of modern life in the sense that we all have a shared fate: the world won’t be free of the virus until all countries are free of it. Africa may be among the last places to be struck by COVID-19, but it is spreading there already. The only way to avoid a second global wave later this year or within the next two years is to support developing countries’ ability to combat the disease.
Those wishing to join us should RSVP at uwcstudygroups@gmail.com. Participation will be limited to 15 members.
Please read/listen to the following background material on which the discussion will be based:
Listen to at least the first 45 mins of Episode 5 - Coronavirus, Capitalism and Inequality
How to make sure the market delivers a COVID-19 vaccine (Center for Global Development)
Will Covid-19 remake the World? (Dani Rodrik - Project Syndicate)
Finding a vaccine is only the first step (Njozi-Okonjo-Iweala - Foreign Affairs)
An Unequal Blow (American Association for the Advancement of Science)