Panel 20: Solidarity, Accessibility and Self - Evelin Lindner | Gabriel Silva Xavier Nascimento, Sueli Salles Fidalgo & Eliezer Willian Simões Nascimento Xavier | Andrea C. Valente | Erinn Cameron & Fiona Cunningham

Evelin Lindner, Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies

From Humiliation to Dignity: For a Future of Global Solidarity – The Coronavirus Pandemic as Opportunity in the Midst of Suffering

Where do we stand, as humankind? We have dug ourselves into a multitude of perilous crises, both despite and because of what we call progress or economic growth. In service of profit, we practice strategies of development that shred our social fabric while simultaneously plundering our planet – fuelling a toxic combination of sociocide and ecocide that leads to intractable cycles of systemic humiliation. The coronavirus pandemic is one manifestation of this dire predicament. At the same time, there are also immense windows of opportunity waiting for us to use. The pandemic reminds humanity that it can and must change. It reminds us also that we can change quickly. And, it reminds us that we can change for the better. Unfortunately, however, instead of recognising the depth of the crises at hand and grasping the historic opportunities to exit, it seems that too many may choose to stay short-sighted and myopic. Consequently, humanity risks missing a momentous opportunity that could ultimately save countless generations of life on this planet. This article offers reflections on the predicament we as humankind face, as well as offering a way forward, a way that transforms debilitating humiliation into life-giving dignity. As the heart-breaking coronavirus pandemic unfolds, the hope is that it works as a wake-up call for us to answer the following question together: How must we, humankind, arrange our affairs on this planet so that dignified life will be possible in the long term?

Gabriel Silva Xavier Nascimento, Instituto Federal de Educação Ciência e Tecnologia de São Paulo - Campus Registro

Sueli Salles Fidalgo, Universidade Federal de São Paulo - Campus Guarulhos

Eliezer Willian Simões Nascimento Xavier, Prefeitura Municipal de Peruíbe

Deadly silence: the acccess to information by deaf Brazilians in the context of  pandemic

Although Brazilian sign language was legally recognized in 2002, the access of deaf people to translated information, especially in the media context, is still very precarious.  In the context of the pandemic, having access to information and guidance in your natural language can be decisive in caring for and maintaining your life. Thus, this research aims to point out the barriers experienced by the deaf considering the absence of translators and interpreters in the main Brazilian journalism, as well as in the channels of the entities responsible for explanations and guidelines about the care and prevention in the contagion and dissemination of the new Corona virus. This is a qualitative research that starts from the collection of testimonies of deaf people about their experiences in the context of the pandemic. The testimonials, collected from a semi-structured questionnaire produced in sign language, allow us to point out the urgency of greater accessibility in the media context and the risks that the absence of accurate information can entail on both deaf and hearing. We also seek to reflect on the socio-emotional effects to which the deaf are exposed when some information is not clear under the risk of causing excessive concern and panic.

Andrea C. Valente, York University, Canada

#MascaraSalva: Redefining the Self amid the Coronavirus Pandemic

As Brazil becomes the epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic in South America,  local governments have decreed an obligatory  use of protective masks for their population in public spaces as the new normal. Its mandatory use reshapes one’s selfhood for the sake of self-care and care of the others when social distance becomes impossible during the pandemic crisis.

Hence, this study explores the reception of obligatory face masks for healthy population among Brazilians in online forum discussions. It analyzes personal narratives by locating arguments of conformity that can redefine one’s sense of self and identity. This study defends that arguments of conformity to wear mandatory face masks are not only an indication of individual’s adaptation to the new normal, but also  a symbolic way of shielding the individual from their own fears of dealing with the uncertainties and crisis created by the pandemic. It is important to examine these arguments of conformity because they  may repress deep emotions while exceeding a person’s resilience threshold which increases their  vulnerability to anxiety and depression. The theoretical framework used here relies on Winnicott’s work and on dynamic complex systems to shed light on the psyche-soma relations under a time of turbulences and chaos. 

Erinn Cameron, Fielding Graduate University, USA

Fiona Cunningham,  Fielding Graduate University, USA

Samantha L. Hemingway, Fielding Graduate University, USA

Kristine M. Jacquin, Fielding Graduate University, USA

Indicators of Climate Change and Structural Gender Inequality increase Vulnerability to Modern Slavery across Countries 

Researchers have observed an increase in rates of violence against women in countries following destabilizing events such as political and economic instability and natural disasters.  Studies have further indicated that climate change and extreme weather events, perhaps the greatest modern threats to human health and security, are at risk of destabilizing entire nations. Additionally, our own research has shown that gendered violence is often founded in social inequalities, which are exacerbated in times of natural disaster and increased environmental stressors. Furthermore, structural inequalities often reflect disparities in gendered power relations, social status, and human rights at both national and global levels. Our research showed that specific indicators of climate change and structural inequality accounted for 45% of the variance in estimated prevalence of modern slavery across 180 countries. We posit that environmental trends as indicators of climate change can provide a foundation for effective policymaking, reducing human insecurity, and thereby acting as a preventative factor for trafficking of vulnerable populations in times of crisis. We propose that the widespread effects of the global climate change crisis on structural inequality must be further investigated in the context of human trafficking vulnerability.