Abramsky Interview – Podcast March 22, 2021

Democratic Perspective

The Impact Of Covid-19 On American Society. Democratic Perspective welcomes back author and journalist Sasha Abramsky to discuss the consequences of the pandemic. He begins by addressing the impact on the economy, saying that those at the bottom of the economy are suffering in a way we didn’t even see in the Great Recession. But, at the macro level things are going relatively well. The stock market is soaring, which has added to the concentration of wealth at the top of the economy.

Asked about the rising crime wave, Abramsky notes that, at the beginning of the pandemic, there was absolute dislocation with 15-20% of workforce out of work. There has been psychic dislocation, as well, caused by profound isolation. “Psychologists and criminologists will be talking about this for decades to come,” he says.

Abramsky expects the effects to linger for a generation, much like the aftermath of the Great Depression, WWII and the Cold War. But, according to Abramsky, not everything about the pandemic is negative. “When we look back on this, in addition to all the trauma and the horror, I do think we’ll find lessons…at the simplest level I doubt any of us will take those we care about for granted. I think we’re going to take a lesson from the pandemic and realize that’s what’s important.”