00:00:00.130 - 00:02:03.720

Hi my name is Kelcy. I am a twenty year old transfer student at American University and currently a third year in anthropology and my professor Professor Pine invited my class, Neoliberal Globalization and Health, to participate in this oral history project. So COVID-19 has impacted my life in so many different ways. I was supposed to move on to DC to finish up my bachelor's but instead I ended up moving back home with my mom. So that was something. I had to quit my job. So, loss of income. One of my uncles unfortunately passed away due to the virus or complications from the virus. My family was also infected with the virus, they're fine now thankfully. And I haven't been able to see my dad over a year because this started in March and he was supposed to come for the summer. But obviously the international flights were unavailable. So a lot of different things. Who or what has kept you going during the crisis? Definitely my parents. They're very supportive in everything that I do. They have been super helpful in the transition that I had to go through, especially my dad. He's so sweet. And definitely my partner. My partner is super supportive in everything that I do and he's kept me grounded for the most part. As for my studies, to keep that GPA high is the -- I'm trying to go to law school, so that has kind of kept me motivated in my studies. So, I've had to force myself to do those things. Yeah.

00:02:05.690 - 00:03:16.710

What do you hope we learn from this crisis? Okay, so as a society, I really do hope that we understand that community is so important, that we have to care for each other. I really think that there has been a lot of controversy on topics that shouldn't be controversial and that we need to care for one another. I hope that the government, or at least the people come to terms with the fact that the government does not really care about us. They care about profit for the government. I hope that they listen to the people to provide more if this happens in the future, or as it continues, to provide more for the people. To be well equipped in medical facilities and to provide free access to treatment and testing in the future. But I do hope that our society moves away from, like this capitalistic system that has proved itself unsustainable under these conditions. So yeah, thank you for having me.