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5 Years After Covid, New York Has Forgotten Its Essential Workers
In a world where the avian flu hovers near us, measles is reemerging, and viruses are mutating daily, we need the example of essential workers’ courage and solidarity to strengthen us for the next public health emergency.
Mar 15, 2025
Just five years after Covid-19 struck New York City, we’ve almost forgotten the early days of the pandemic in the spring of 2020, when refrigerator trucks were filled with dead bodies and 800 people a day were dying from Covid-19. We may remember the lockdowns and disputes over masking and vaccines that persist to this day, but we fail to remember what actually kept the city running and helped it survive: the labor of essential workers in our hospitals, grocery stores, transit system, police precincts, and firehouses.
The desire to forget the traumas of the pandemic is perfectly human, but forgetting the labor that saved the city would be a dangerous mistake. In a world where the avian flu hovers near us, measles is reemerging, and viruses are mutating daily, we need the example of essential workers’ courage and solidarity to strengthen us for the next public health emergency.
When then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s ”New York On Pause” plan took effect on March 22 of 2020, it divided the state’s workforce into essential workers (who were expected to go out to do their jobs) and the rest of us who could labor from home.
Maintaining public health requires setting aside private interest to serve the public good. When a communicable disease attacks, it becomes clear that the health of each of us is bound up with the health of all of us.
Essential workers drew strength from many sources—from socially conscious professionalism to ideals of courage to the support of workmates to the knowledge that their families needed their paycheck to survive.
For some essential workers—above all police and firefighters—facing danger is part of the job. And transit workers toil in a system of buses, subways, and repair shops where hazards are common.
Others faced danger on their jobs for the first time. Healthcare professionals expect to confront dangerous illnesses, but the communicability of Covid-19 was unusual. Cashiers in supermarkets and drug stores were surprised to find themselves facing a deadly disease transmitted by customers and coworkers.
It was a scary time. Police officers, firefighters, paramedics, and emergency medical technicians went into the homes of the sick to provide support, care, and—when all else failed—transportation to a hospital. Nurses learned new skills overnight to meet the demands of Covid-19, then held cellphones next to their dying patients so they could hear the voices of their loved ones. Doctors improvised new forms of communication and treatment. Cashiers and food service workers provided meals and emotional support for customers.
For all their bravery, many essential workers faced terrible working conditions. Bicycle couriers who delivered meals for restaurants confronted poor pay, bad weather, and the galling fact that the restaurants they served would not let them use their toilets. Health care professionals grappled with shortages of protective gear and medical supplies.
Transit workers had to deal with passengers who ignored rules on social distancing. One bus driver was knocked unconscious by a passenger after he asked him to put on a mask to cover his chronic cough.
Still, for a brief time, the city seemed united. Every night at 7:00 pm, New Yorkers learned from their windows or stood on the sidewalk to cheer their essential workers. For precious minutes we broke out of our isolation, saluted the best in us, and strengthened each other. Working together, putting the common good first, the city managed to “bend the curve.” Stay-at-home orders, social distancing, and masking brought the number of infections down.
By June, the Covid-19 surge of spring 2020 was over and deaths were down to a much-reduced level of less than 50 a day.
But the spirit of solidarity proved to be short-lived. Ironically, after vaccines against Covid-19 were introduced in December 2020 and danger eased, the city was gripped by a sour mood, starting with negative reactions to a computerized system of registration for vaccines that was glitchy and inefficient. Restaurant operators had to contend with both changing municipal guidelines and customers who flouted masking requirements. Old currents of hatred, especially antisemitism and racism against Asians, gained new strength. Over time, the value of the vaccines themselves became a subject of debate and disinformation.
One of the great lessons of the pandemic is that solidarity is hard to maintain. When the interest of public health and personal interest aligned, as they did in the spring of 2020, people were willing to wear masks and engage in social distancing to save themselves. Once the vaccines made them feel safe, they were reluctant to accept limitations on their individual lives.
Maintaining public health requires setting aside private interest to serve the public good. When a communicable disease attacks, it becomes clear that the health of each of us is bound up with the health of all of us.
In the grim days of the pandemic, essential workers were their brothers and sisters’ keepers. For all the divisions in our city and country over the pandemic and so much else, the courage of essential workers is something we all can admire. We need to learn from it if we are to build a better future.
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11 Arrested at DC Office Demanding Schumer 'Stand With Working People'
"Instead of standing with young and everyday people, Schumer is compromising on our lives and futures," said an 18-year-old who was arrested at the protest.
Mar 14, 2025
Protesters were arrested at U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's Washington, D.C. office Friday morning while opposing the New York Democrat's plan to help congressional Republicans prevent a government shutdown with a stopgap funding measure that critics warn will further empower President Donald Trump and his billionaire allies, including Elon Musk.
The Sunrise Movement, a youth-led campaign to fight the climate emergency and create green jobs, said 11 protesters were arrested while urging the Schumer not to help the GOP advance the House-approved continuing resolution (CR). Although Republicans have a Senate majority, it is too slim to force final votes on most legislation without Democratic support.
"If Schumer prioritizes deal-making with Trump and Musk over standing up for the people, he is unfit to lead."
"Schumer must stand with working people and young people, not billionaires. This budget is a corrupt giveaway that sells out everyday Americans and our planet to Trump and Musk's greed. If Schumer prioritizes deal-making with Trump and Musk over standing up for the people, he is unfit to lead," Sunrise executive director Aru Shiney-Ajay said in a statement.
"We demand courage, not cowardice," she added. "This is bigger than politics. It's about protecting our communities, our democracy, and our planet from corruption and corporate greed. Schumer must fight back—now."
The protesters carried banners and signs with messages that included, "Schumer: Step Up or Step Aside," "Schumer: Don't Be a Coward," and "Our Future Is on Fire, Act Like It Is." The protesters echoed those messages.
"Instead of standing with young and everyday people, Schumer is compromising on our lives and futures," said 18-year-old Carly Bryant, who was arrested outside his office. "This bill guts services that working people like me need, just to make the rich richer. If Schumer won't step up and fight for us, he needs to step aside."
D.C. resident Ayesha Nagaria also accused Schumer of siding with Trump and "his billionaire agenda instead of communities across the country and in this city." The 22-year-old stressed that "the people of D.C. cannot afford to have our education and healthcare systems shut down, and Schumer is turning his back on us. If he won't have a backbone and stand up for us, we need to stand up for ourselves."
The GOP push to pass the CR before a shutdown begins at midnight comes as Trump and his billionaires—from Cabinet leaders to Musk, head of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—are gutting the federal government. Although they are running into some roadblocks in court, the administration is also showing its willingness to ignore judges' orders. Meanwhile, Republicans in Congress are aiming to give the rich tax cuts by slashing programs for the working class.
Protesters who gathered at Schumer's home in New York City Friday morning shared similar messages, holding signs that said, "People Over Billionaires," "Schumer, Vote No or Go," and "Schumer: Do Not Comply in Advance, Say No to Cloture."
"I Wish AOC Was My Senator," read one sign, a reference to growing calls for Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) to launch a primary challenge against Schumer. She has been a leading critic of his plan to vote for cloture, or to end debate.
While Ocasio-Cortez is a leading progressive, intense criticism of Schumer's position—that preventing a shutdown with this CR is the best of various bad options—is coming from across the "big tent" of the Democratic Party, including its House leaders.
The demonstration at Schumer's Brooklyn residence was organized by a local arm of the progressive group Indivisible.
The protest was "a testament to how many people are upset," Indivisible Brooklyn organizer Lisa Raymond-Tolan toldSalon, noting that hundreds of people "came out at 8 o'clock in the morning on a weekday to let the senator know that he is off course and capitulating to fascism—and we won't stand for it."
"He is not the leader for this moment," Raymond-Tolan told the crowd, according to Salon. "We need him to fight back or get the fuck out."
So far, in the Senate Democratic Caucus, only Schumer and Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) had publicly made clear that they intend to vote "yes" on cloture, though Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) is also widely expected to, after she was overheard "speaking quite loudly" against a shutdown during a Thursday lunch with colleagues.
Whatever happens with the CR and looming shutdown, there is now a movement to oust Schumer from Democratic Party leadership—and as of Friday it includes the "Pass the Torch" campaign that pressured former President Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 contest.
"Chuck Schumer is unwilling and unable to meet the moment. His sole job is to fight MAGA's fascist takeover of our democracy—instead, he's directly enabling it," said Pass the Torch. "Americans desperately need a real opposition party to stand up to Trump. It's clear that will not happen as long as Schumer remains in charge of Senate Democrats. It's time to 'chuck' Schumer out. Chuck Schumer must resign as minority leader and make way for leaders who will actually fight for the American people."
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Columbia Yanks Degrees From Pro-Palestine Protesters Amid Outrage Over Khalil Arrest
The impacted students and graduates are accused of participating in the occupation of a university building that protesters renamed in honor of a child killed by Israeli forces in Gaza.
Mar 13, 2025
As the Trump administration's effort to deport Mahmoud Khalil sparks legal battles and demonstrations, Columbia University announced Thursday that it has revoked degrees from some other pro-Palestinian campus protesters.
A campuswide email reported by The Associated Press and shared on social media by Drop Site News says that "the Columbia University Judicial Board determined findings and issued sanctions to students ranging from multiyear suspensions, temporary degree revocations, and expulsions related to the occupation of Hamilton Hall last spring."
According to both news outlets, the university's email did not say how many students and graduates were impacted by each action.
As part of nationwide protests over the U.S. government and educational institutions' complicity in Israel's assault on the Gaza Strip, Columbia students took over the building last April and renamed it Hind's Hall, in honor of a young Palestinian girl killed by Israeli forces. With support from the university's leadership, New York Police Department officers stormed the campus.
Columbia's new sanctions against protesters were widely condemned on social media. Iowa-based writer Gavin Aronsen quipped, "This is a great PR strategy, come to Columbia where you'll get a solid education as long as you never speak your mind."
News of the university's latest action on Thursday came after nearly 100 people were arrested outside Trump Tower in New York City during a Jewish-led protest over the government's attempt to deport Khalil, a green-card holder who finished his studies at Columbia in December.
"The Trump administration's outrageous detention of Mahmoud Khalil is designed to sow terror and stop people of conscience from calling for Palestinian freedom," said Ros Petchesky, an 82-year-old MacArthur fellow and Columbia alumna. "We are Jewish New Yorkers and we remain steadfast in our commitment to Palestinian freedom, to protecting free speech and the right to protest, and to defending immigrants and all under attack by the Trump regime."
Meanwhile, during a Thursday interview with NPR about Khalil's detention, Troy Edgar, deputy homeland security secretary, equated protesting and terrorism.
This article has been updated to reflect the revised arrest figure for Thursday's protest.
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