November 16th
Dear friends,
It is mid-November, the President-reject has not conceded, and the President-elect still does not have access to daily security briefings. Please take one minute to contact your elected officials and ask them to make sure that the incoming Administration gets the resources for a smooth and efficient transition now. More important, please forward that link to friends and family members around the nation. Apologies for beginning the week on this note, but, I’m a bit perturbed. As Adam Gopnick noted:
Good sportsmanship grew up with parliamentary democracy, as a kind of mimic liberal institution. Good sportsmanship implies the enduring legitimacy of the other side and the natural oscillation of winning and losing as something normal—not something fatal, to be feared. The idea of shaking hands with the other side after a loss is…fundamental to our democratic morality. A handshake is expected because it demonstrates your commitment to the rules of the game.
Some of us have been losing sleep lately. Flo Lubega, one of the extraordinary women who cares for my mama, shared a GoFundMe request for her campaign Give Them a Chance to Sleep. She is fundraising to provide Ugandan children with “life-changing items like soap, sugar, baby sheets, blankets, and girls sanitary supplies…to give these kids a chance to be children [and] allow them a chance to sleep adequately so they can settle in class.” If you are feeling gratitude for your comfortable home, please support Flo’s campaign.
As the COVID crisis worsens here and around the nation, I find myself rethinking the school-closing question, again and again. The schools are not the cause of the rising number of cases, however, and the need to shut down the sites responsible for community spread is urgent. The following is from a recent email from Council member Brad Lander (bold type is his):
The decision regarding our schools belongs to the Mayor, but it's the Governor who has the power regarding indoor dining, and other business restrictions. [Last week] the Governor announced that restaurants, bars, and gyms must close at 10 PM (as if the virus could tell time), and restricted indoor gatherings to 10 people.
We should treat schools like the essential institutions that they are. Prioritizing schools means closing indoor dining, gyms, offices, and even non-essential retail before we close the schools.
I think we can agree that public health is a priority and the Governor needs to take stronger action to restrict the indoor activities that have been shown to lead to rising infections. It is nonsensical to close schools but not restaurants (I was wrong about this in the summer). Please contact the Governor to ask that he prohibit indoor dining and close high-risk non-essential businesses, such as gyms. I think it’s also time to close houses of worship. We should not tolerate another season of failed decision-making in NY. We still have to slog through the end of this presidency.
Slog on, friends, and be safe.
with love,
L