Items

• 
  2022-05-03

  COVID protocol and abortion

  This is a tweet from CJ_isnowblue regarding the leaked opinion from the Supreme Court on abortion. She is criticizing the way Republicans have protested for their rights to bodily autonomy on things such as mask mandates and vaccines, while wanting to restrict the bodily rights women have. Throughout the pandemic, the abortion debate has come up a time or two due to the "my body, my choice" rhetoric being used by those against masks and vaccines. Prior to this, it was mainly used for discussions on abortion, but now the two subjects are getting linked in public discourse.
• 
  2022-05-02

  You can't co-opt "my body, my choice"

  This is a tweet from Anna Akana regarding the leaked opinion draft from the Supreme Court, which would overturn Roe v. Wade. Here, she is criticizing people who use "my body, my choice" in regards to masks, but don't allow it for when it comes to women's reproductive health.
• 
  2021-11-14

  Emotionally Exhausted Teacher

  This item is a screenshot from a Twitter account known as the Diary of a COVID Classroom Teacher. This account's response to a picture about children with big emotions shows the frustrations that many teachers are facing during the pandemic. Many students have struggled due to the lack of routine and disruptions in their lives caused by COVID-19. Throughout the nations, behavior issues are being seen. Teachers are struggling more than ever while they try to help these students who are acting out while also staying on top of their other responsibilities.
• 
  2022-01-08

  Frustrations of a Teacher

  The item is a screenshot from a Twitter post of someone known as "Diary of a COVID Classroom Teacher". For their post, they had edited a motivational photo to question how to handle a toxic person if they are in your classroom. This post expresses frustrations that are shared by many teachers during the pandemic. With many schools being entirely in-person for the first time in two years, teachers are experiencing a huge amount of behavior issues, most likely caused by lack of routine and social/emotional growth during this time.
• 
  2022-04-28

  What Musk's free-speech Twitter could unleash

  This is a news story from Axios by Ina Fried. This is about the ramifications that could happen with Elon Musk's Twitter buyout. The author is worried about both election and COVID misinformation becoming more common on Twitter again. Other things added to this list include: sharing of manipulated media, impersonating others, increase of spam content, hateful conduct, and forms of violence being allowed.
• 
  2021-09

  Meme about covid-19 as a religion

  I encountered this meme on twitter in 2021. Someone had shared it not understanding what it meant, to make fun of whom they assumed was an American Conservative who made it, and when I first saw it- it provided me with a lightbulb moment. I had not been able to understand through the pandemic why followers of God based religions were not able to take the pandemic seriously. Outside of conservative politics there was an aspect missing from the conversation about the pushback against pandemic safety measures. This meme showed me that many believers in God were unable to take the pandemic 'seriously' because to be afraid of covid-19 would be to view and interact with it like they do God. If you fear God, if your relationship to God is fear based, you cannot fear Covid-19 unless you wish to treat it in a manner similar to God. I think this simple meme is important in contextualizing the history of the pandemic, how those of God based faiths could not cope with the pandemic in a similar manner as others. The pandemic has changed me in a lot of ways, I had just turned 22 when the pandemic first started and now in December of 2022 I will turn 25 years old. Transitioning from early to mid 20's is always a challenge but the pandemic has created strange times as I transition more into adulthood. This meme has begun an interest and more mature perspective on the role religion plays not only in politics but the psychology behind people of God based faiths. This meme alone has assisted me in developing compassion for people I thought were just stupid when the pandemic started. There is no one rational response to immense fear, only personal widely varied responses; every person has a deeply individualized psychology built off of neural networks formed only by their unique experiences daily.
• 
  2022-04-26

  WHO Warns About the Dangers of Health Misinformation as Musk Takes Over Twitter

  This is a news story from Bloomberg News by Andy Hoffman and Clara Hernanz Lizarraga. Since Elon Musk has officially acquired Twitter, it has prompted groups like the World Health Organization to give warnings on COVID misinformation. Mike Ryan, the executive director of the health emergencies program at the WHO issued a statement on Musk buying Twitter for $44 billion dollars. “When anyone reaches a position in life where they have so much influence over the way information is shared with communities, they take on a huge responsibility,” Ryan said at the media briefing in Geneva. “We wish Mr. Musk luck with his endeavors to improve the quality of information we all receive.” Throughout the pandemic, the WHO has worked to make sure correct information about the pandemic and vaccines are being spread. The WHO has an overall fear now that bad information could be spread more easily about COVID and possibly cause more death.
• 
  2022-04-21

  Effects of COVID - even in April 2022

  This a screenshot of a Twitter post. In the post, @DrumUltimA describes how even in April 2022, COVID-19 is still having major effects on different aspects of his life. He also points out that he disagrees with so many precautionary measures being dropped. These viewpoints are important as it shows that even though many mandates, regulations, and laws meant to prevent COVID-19 have been lifted, COVID-19 is still around and causing many problems for people.
• 
  2022-04-19

  Twitter post in response to masks no longer being federally required on planes

  A Twitter user, who works in a hospital, shares her frustrations after masks are no longer federally required on planes. Many people are happy about this ruling, but others, especially those on the "frontlines" in the hospitals, are expressing their frustrations with people acting as if the pandemic is over.
• 
  2022-04-15

  Caring for my husband

  This is a Twitter update from Shelby_Thom. She says that her husband became a long-haul COVID patient. He got vestibular neuritis, which causes severe dizziness. He is unable to work or drive. He was a healthy 34-year-old too prior to this, but now hits his head a few days after recovery.
• 
  2022-04-11

  It's Not Over Yet

  This is a Twitter update from DrLindaMD. This is about a doctor rebutting claims that COVID is over now. She says that she has had five patients in the last week who thought they just had a cold, but it turned out that they had COVID. None of those patients chose to isolate because "it was just a cold."
• 
  2022-04-18

  Striking Down Mask Mandates

  This is a Twitter update by artisfire1. This is about a judge striking down mandates on planes. Tony, otherwise known as atrisfire1, blames it on the selfishness of the right wing in the United States. The comic underneath that is posted helps demonstrate this person's feeling on the matter. The "I'm with them" sign held by an anthropomorphic coronavirus, is there with the anti-mandate crowd, making it apparent that the author of this tweet sees the anti-mandate crowd as the ones who spread the virus the most.
• 
  2022-04-04

  Traumatic Event After Traumatic Event

  Screenshot I found from @lovedoveclarke on Twitter. A little dark humor surrounding the many traumatic events we keep experiencing
• 
  2022-03-19

  Thought on Pfizer's Fourth Booster

  This is an Instagram post by willingtowalkaway. The poster is using a tweet to make their point. In the tweet, someone by the username of SaraVic333 says that she does not want another shot. In the hashtags in the Instagram post, the user is in agreement, saying that they do not want it either. Another thing that is tagged is "natural immunity", which some believe is enough to counteract COVID without needing a vaccine. Other tags include things like "I will not comply" and "poison." Posts like these are important because they help show what skeptics think of the vaccines from their own perspective rather than one assumed by others.
• 
  2022-01-21

  School Apologizes After Viral Photo Of Teacher Taping Mask To Student's Face Outrages Parents

  This is a news story from Your Tango by Nia Tipton. This is about a middle school in Pennsylvania, where a video of a teacher taping a mask to a student caused outrage. The photo was taken at Pennfield Middle School in Hatfield. The photo went viral and appeared on Sean Hannity's website. The middle school announced that they are going to conduct an investigation over this scandal. Parents also expressed their anger at school board meetings over this. The mother of the student getting his mask taped to his face says that she never intended for the story to go viral. She used the photo to gain support from a Facebook group prior to a school board meeting. She says that other individuals in the group took it upon themselves to spread this story further.
• 
  2022-02-17

  Elon Musk Compares Justin Trudeau To Hitler In Bizarre Response To Canadian Trucker Protests

  This is a news story from Your Tango by Isaac Serna-Diez. This is about a Twitter rant, where Elon Musk, owner of Tesla, compares Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to Adolf Hitler over the Canadian Trucker Protests. In January, both the United States and Canada imposed vaccine mandates. According to the American Trucking Association, only 50-60% of all truckers are vaccinated. The truckers have created a convoy that blocks traffic across the US-Canada border in response to the mandates. Trudeau's response to this was to invoke the Emergencies Act, which has't been used since 1988. The Emergencies Act allows for freezing of bank accounts and funds in order to take money away from those protesting. These freezes would also impact things like GoFundMe and the ability to raise funds from that site. It also allows for military involvement, but Trudeau says that he has no plans of doing so. Musk's response to what Trudeau imposed economically on protesters prompted him to promote cryptocurrency more.
• 2021-02-08

  Tweets that reflected life during online school

  These tweets reflect how I felt while doing my senior year from behind a computer screen in my room. I would put my zoom class on and then spend time on my phone. Life was really boring, I had school everyday and couldn't see many of my friends. My school used Microsoft Teams for class, and it was really bad compared to Zoom.
• 
  03/28/2020

  David Lee Oral History, 2020/03/28

  David Dale Lee spoke with his daughter Harper Lee on March 28, 2020, regarding the impact of the outbreak of COVID-19 on his professional and personal life. David is a semi-retired professor of history at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Kentucky. David primarily discusses the impact of the pandemic on his teaching and research projects, but he also touches on changes to personal life, particularly shopping and connecting with friends via Zoom. David also reflects on other crises that have shaped his life.
• 
  2021-03-14

  Paradigm Shifts

  The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about many paradigm shifts; everyone I know has undergone a lot of change in themselves, their beliefs, and in how they view and interact with the world. There is a lot of grief these days but there are changes worth being happy about.
• 
  2021-05

  Reopening too Soon

  In many states, the government seemingly ended mask mandates and opened back up in one day. Washington State lifted mask mandates and reopened everything at 100% only to reinstate mask mandates and reduce compacity a few weeks later. This has lead to the meme of everything is on fire but let's just reopen anyways.
• 
  2020-04-08

  Keeping Concerts Alive

  The pandemic forfeited any chance of attending that concert or planned music festival. Although online meetings weren't anyone's favorite, the switch from in-person concerts to Instagram and Facebook live concerts was a success. These quarantine concerts were able to keep the public entertained in their homes while keeping the spirit of live music alive.
• 
  2021-10-01

  Tucson Epidemiologist Outspoken on Twitter

  Elizabeth Jacobs (@TheAngryEpi on Twitter) regularly tweets about the pandemic. She has been vocal about the University of Arizona's mitigation strategy, specifically how the university will not defy Governor Ducey's ban on mask mandates. She is a professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Arizona and has played a big role in the UA Vaccine POD and COVID-related research. She is particularly outspoken about vaccines and masks in education settings, not just at the university level but also for K-12.
• 
  2021-05-14

  "Disinformation Dozen"

  This article discusses "misleading claims and outright lies about COVID-19 vaccines that proliferate on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter". According to the article, 12 people are behind the majority of the misinformation surrounding COVID and the vaccine that leads to conspiracy theories. Many of these theories have led some social media users to avoid the vaccine and ignore scientific facts. It is scary to think that such a small group of people are in control of so much of what we see on social media. What this small group shares and communicates to users are so widespread... I can't open a social media app without seeing some sort of conspiracy theory about COVID or the vaccine. We are so close to overcoming the pandemic, but this type of misinformation is holding us back.
• 
  2020-03-20

  Meme

  The meme was from the beginning of the pandemic, where people were stocking up. The stores were empty and people were rushing to get important thongs, such as toilet paper, water bottles, etc.
• 
  2020

  Present

  Living during the pandemic, everyday felt like yesterday. The same things happened over and over again. It left me pondering when things will ever get back to normal. But even if things did get back to normal, these normal things will happen everyday. What makes the pandemic so different? The pandemic and COVID made me realize the many things I took for granted: seeing my friends and family, going outside for fun, going to school in-person, and much more. This is why I chose this post. Today, it is so true that the real world is an escape from the internet, especially with all of the Zoom and online learning, going outside is a pleasure.
• 
  2021-04

  Golden Snub-Nosed Monkey takes over Twitter

  Everyone is obsessing over this one specific golden snub-nosed monkey on Twitter. Why? Don't ask some things are just better left to be enjoyed than questioned. I definitely have felt a million times better after discovering this specific species of monkey (it is very wonderful and charismatic in a strange way).
• 
  2020

  Sistema de monitoreo territorial

  "El Sistema de Monitoreo Territorial es una plataforma de recolección y generación de información que hace parte del sistema de información propio de la Organización Nacional Indígena de Colombia." "The Territorial Monitoring System is a platform for collecting and generating information that is part of the information system of the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia"
• 
  2020-07

  Confirmed COVID-19 Cases in the Indian Health System

  This data is presented by Talia Quandelacy, Infectious Disease Epidemiologist and Native American, to illustrate COVID-19 cases/deaths in Native American communities in July 2020, from publicly available information.
• 
  2021-04-06

  A People's Recovery

  This is a screenshot of a post from the official Communist Party of Canada’s Instagram account. This post calls for the introduction of a $23/hr minimum wage, 14 paid sick leave for all on behalf of the employers, and a cut to the work week to 32 hours with 40 hours of take-home pay. These reforms are more than needed, and will help alleviate struggles which have been exaggerated by the pandemic on everyday people. As strategies of austerity, and cutting of social security/benefits, empowering the private sector has not been working; rather these strategies have only brought suffering to the people, who are already struggling with a global pandemic. The Communist Party of Canada calls for united action in this post, stating that these reforms will not be freely given by the bourgeois ruling class as history has shown. Only through direction action and the mobilization of the worker will the just rewards of our labor be secured – as these interests are directly opposed to the interests of the capitalist ruling class. I feel this item in particular would be useful in documenting radical history during the pandemic, how left wing politics/activism functioned in a digitally quarantined setting. As primarily Instagram and Twitter were used to mobilize advocacy for direct action and to generate class consciousness amongst Canadians in this time of pandemic; which has seen the growth of income inequality and a shocking lack of federal support for Canadians.
• 
  2020

  Pandemic Street Art: TVBoy and pop street art during the pandemic

  TVBoy is the artist name of Salvatore Benintende, Italian graffiti artist from based in Barcelona, Spain. Through the months of the pandemic, TVBoy has put up several wheat paste murals incorporating imagery of the pandemic, social justice issues, Catholic imagery, and political topics: a school of fish wearing masks; former President Trump in a Superman costume; the Sacred Heart Jesus figure wearing a mask; imagery of Antonio Canova’s statue The Three Graces (the mythological three charities, daughters of Zeus — Euphrosyne, Aglaea and Thalia — said to represent youth/beauty, mirth, and elegance) wearing form-fitting scrubs, clogs, masks, and representing three well known vaccines (Moderna, Pfizer, and AstraZeneca); imagery of Leonardo da Vinci's painting The Last Supper but with Jesus wearing a mask and separating two sides of the table; and others.
• 
  2021-04-01

  Scary Jokes - April Fools

  I love this band and one of their albums is known as April Fools so this meme is just about it and the day (April Fools)
• 
  2021-03-26

  New Friend

  A weird sort of horror video I found on Twitter which I found weirdly relevant. It is definitely worth the experience.
• 
  2021-01-09

  Twitter hides post about COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy theory on Iran supreme leader's account

  Another COVID related regional tension. Interesting to watch geopolitical conflicts play out regionally in relation to COVID. As China, Iran, and Russia strengthen their alliance and control over central Asia.
• 
  2020-12-07

  Tweet: Ontario Safety

  "In Ontario, It’s unsafe to walk outdoor hiking trails But It is safe to walk to aisles in Walmart & Costco Because science"
• 
  2020-12-07

  Dr. Henry extends gathering restrictions over the holidays

  Tweet: "British Columbia has banned family gatherings of any kind over Christmas right to January 8! Wow, Merry Christmas & Happy New Year indeed. Will be the worst suicide numbers ever. Why aren’t we allowed to get Covid tests to show we don’t have Covid to visit family?"
• 
  2020-10-01

  Ramin Karimloo gave Youtube concert to raise money for healthcare workers

  On October 1, 2020, Ramin Karimloo, who starred in several musicals on West End, held a livestreamed concert on his Youtube channel to help raise money for healthcare workers. The charity he featured was Care Not Profit, a Canadian-based charity lobbying for living wages for people who work in for-profit long-term care facilities, better conditions for residents of those facilities, and better benefits for the workers.
• 
  2020-06-25

  Disneyland and Social Justice

  This is a tweet Disneyland made during the peaceful protests. It is them explaining that they are going to switch their famous Splash Mountain ride theme to a Princess and the Frog theme. This is because the original theme of the ride was based off the movie “Song of the South” which is racially inappropriate and now illegal to own or watch in the United States. During the BLM peaceful protests Disney decided it was best to erase any evidence of that movie and switch the theme of the ride to something more racially appropriate. This shows where the Disney cooperation stands on the subject of social justice and their support of the peaceful protests.
• 
  2020-04-22

  AOC Tweet 4/22/2020

  This tweet is by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and reads: “GOP is seriously arguing that it’s worth sacrificing the lives of hourly workers so they can get a spray tan again. If they really wanted to reopen the economy, they’d fund mass testing, contact tracing, & healthcare for people. Instead they’re fighting against hospital funding.” This tweet briefly brings up the not-scientifically-founded idea of “re-opening” in order to boost the economy. And the lack of funding for mass covid testing/tracing, and general healthcare is also mentioned.
• 
  2020-06-02

  Racism Caught on Cell Phone

  This cartoon drawn by Michael de Adder was posted on Twitter in response to the murder of George Floyd being caught on cell phone camera. It highlights the racism that is seen by the majority of the public versus what minorities experience in their everyday lives.
• 
  2020-10-27

  Kim Kardashian Receives Backlash over COVID-19 Vacation Tweet

  Celebrity Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) posts a tone-deaf tweet about vacationing for her 40th birthday. This was not well received by the public, as it was viewed as overly privileged and offensive to the many people out there struggling to make ends meet during this pandemic. This tweet has sparked many parody memes mocking Kim's tweet.
• 
  2020-10-28

  Twitter’s Nostradamus

  This individual, The Red-Headed Libertarian, is evidently psychic, predicting that there would be a plague in 2020. Granted, their logic for guessing this is based on something that became apparent to many after COVID hit, which is that the 20th year of the past two centuries have included pandemic events.
• 
  2020-10-25

  Dussehra- The Triumph of Good Over Evil

  Watch the video of effigy of Ravana, and other demons being burnt on the occasion of Dussehra, an Indian festival. Hindus over the world celebrate Lord Rama's victory over the demon Ravana, and the triumph of good over evil. With over 7.86 million COVID cases and 119,000 deaths, people in Sharstri Park, New Delhi can be seen celebrating Dussehra with high spirits. To know more about the festival: https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/india/dussehra
• 
  2020-10-08

  A Viral Social Media Video Brings Crowd to Struggling Food Stall

  Baba ka Dhaba, a 30-year-old food stall in Malviya Nagar, New Delhi went viral on Instagram showing the sheer power of social media. The link below shows us an 80-year-old man named Kanta Prasad explaining how they barely manage to meet their basic needs during this pandemic. While showing the food he even broke down and cried in front of the food blogger Gaurav Wasan. Delicious and mouth-watering curries such as dal (lentils), Paneer Matar (cottage cheese and peas) and Aloo soya (potato soya curry) can be seen in the video which are only priced from Rs.30-50 (less than a dollar). This touching video reached 9 million views on Instagram in less than a day and even got support from Bollywood celebrities. Zomato, an Indian food delivery app even registered this stall on their app showing their support making #Babakadhaba one of the topmost trends on Indian Twitter right now.
• 
  2020-10-14

  Thanksgiving May Look Different This Year

  Due to new information regarding the discovery that small household gatherings were increasing the COVID-19 infection rate, Thanksgiving gatherings may have to be downsized this year for the sake of safety. I am very sad to hear this, because Thanksgiving is my favorite time of the year. Being away in college so long has made me homesick and I miss my extended family members.
• 
  2020-10-05T15

  Stocks Fall after Trump Announces Deferral of Stimulus Talks

  President Donald Trump announces that he will not discuss the issue of stimulus talks to boost the economy during the pandemic. After this announcements, the DOW was down by 400+ points.
• 
  2020-10-09

  Controversy Over if Trump can Return to Office

  twitter screenshot of whether President Donald Trump can return to his presidential duties after contacting COVID-19. Despite being cleared by his physician, other medical experts are skeptical, as Trump may still be contagious.
• 
  2020-09-13

  Tweets from Inside a Prison 09/13-09/19/2020 by Railroad Underground

  These images show the Tweets of an incarcerated person utilizing a contraband cell phone to let the outside world know about prison conditions during the pandemic. This week he talks about #BlueLivesMatter, police shootings, and violence, self worth, parenting from prison, fighting for justice, trauma, reading, meditation, protests, Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death, and district attorneys.
• 
  2020-09-06

  Tweets from Inside a Prison 09/06-09/12/2020 by Railroad Underground

  These images show the Tweets of an incarcerated person utilizing a contraband cell phone to let the outside world know about prison conditions during the pandemic. This week he talks about how Sunday's are the hardest for him because he missed spending time with his family, spending Labor Day in a melting cage, is he in a California or west coast prison where they are experiencing raging wild fires or is it just hot there, convict leasing is still happening, including many of the firefighters used to battle the wildfires in California, those in county jails learning sign language to be able to communicate from their cells because they spent little time outside their cells, the lack of vegetables in prison made them plant "secret gardens" both inside and out, rehabilitation in spite of toxic conditions, mentorship, his many family members that are/were incarcerated and how incarceration tears apart families.
• 
  2020-08-30

  Tweets from Inside a Prison 08/30-09/05/2020 by Railroad Underground

  These images show the Tweets of an incarcerated person utilizing a contraband cell phone to let the outside world know about prison conditions during the pandemic. This week he talks about forever loosing his right to vote because he is now a felon, the logic of incarceration where people are told everyday how worthless they are as a way to make them "fit" into society, the daily request he receives to send or receive messages on his contraband cell phone, that the phone represents hope, a dream about Donald Trump, he never had role models growing up but now has them inside prison and they are other incarcerated people, and his greatest fear is not knowing. He says that used to relate to not knowing when he would get out, or if his parents would die before he is released but Covid has changed this into not knowing when he will be allowed to shower or get a bar of soap.
• 
  2020-10-01T22:51

  Order of succession if Donald Trump is fatally ill from coronavirus

  Tom O’Conner on Twitter (@shaolintom) noticed a spike in search for the 25th amendment after President Donald Trump was confirmed to have Coronavirus. The 25th amendment states the order of succession should the president be unable to do his duties.