Published on 12th Apr, 2021
THE Covid 19 pandemic has laid bare the deep inequalities in our societies, but if change is to be delivered, ‘this is the moment to seize’.
That was one of the messages from international figures who took part in an SCI discussion on building a fairer future which held as part of the Imagine Belfast Festival.
The event featured global perspectives (see an excerpt above), plus local contributions from Northern Ireland, with the aim of developing a better understanding of the experiences of the pandemic and how we can promote positive change. (A video of the full event and a collection of individual interviews are available at the end of this article.)
Professor of Health Equity at the Australian National University Sharon Friel said: “Covid-19 is exacerbating existing social and health inequities and unless there is consistent political and policy attention we will see a massive widening of inequities.
“One of the few silver linings that has arisen from this terrible pandemic is, right now, in countries around the world, health is up there in the discourse with the economy.
"What that means is, an incredible opportunity to think about a wellbeing economy, so the purpose of the economy is not the end, in and of itself. It’s a means to enable us as societies around the world to lead a decent flourishing life. We have an opportunity right now. This is the moment to seize.”
Professor Friel said coordinated action by coalitions of interested groups was required to see the delivery of a ‘social vaccine’ for the world to deliver policies that would "inoculate us against the inequities within society”.
The international contributors also included US rights activist Deepa Iyer, Teresa Buczkowska of the Immigrant Council of Ireland, Eleni Takou of HumanRights360, Brad Brockman of the Tshisimani Centre for Activist Education in South Africa and the co-founder of More In Common Tim Dixon.
While they all saw a risk of governments sliding backwards into old practices, or failing to seriously address core issues, they also saw opportunities.
Tim Dixon said: “This might be the only time in our lifetimes when we truly have this shared experience of dramatic change.
“It’s striking that we found, in tracking people’s attitudes, there is this ongoing sense of ‘we can make a difference in our communities if we really try’. There is more of a sense of agency and the ability to change things.”
"the community itself knows what the suffering is like"
A discussion among Northern Ireland activists, chaired by Edinburgh University’s Christine Bell who is also a member of the SCI board, heard some surprise at the lack of awareness in broader society of existing inequalities.
But speakers detailed the efforts of grassroots groups to meet needs in their communities.
Debbie Watters, Co-Director at NI Alternatives restorative justice organisation, said: “What I was encouraged by was the community response. People did put themselves at risk to go out and deliver meals. We put in place all of the appropriate measures, but really the question was, if communities don’t mobilise and do that work, who will do it?
“In many statutory and some voluntary organisations we saw the shutters being pulled down and people just not being present on the ground. When people are truly suffering who comes and stands in that space?
"It is the community itself, as the community itself knows what the suffering is like…I think that was a worldwide phenomenon.”
Seamus Corr of the Black Mountain Shared Space Project also highlighted the scale of community volunteering and the degree to which communities in this deeply divided society cooperated to help each other.
“That created a dynamic I’m hoping we can sustain and build on going forward. I think we were delivering in the region of 700 parcels per week. We were putting out 400 ready-made meals. We were sharing transport, we were sharing anything that came into the middle.”
He cited the challenges of dealing with communities who looked to either London or Dublin for direction during the pandemic, while suffering rising unemployment, housing crises and a range of other issues that saw demands for help "go through the roof".
Local activist Coumilah Manjoo said minority communities were often overlooked in a society dominated by two major blocs. She welcomed the efforts of community volunteers to address needs, but like other speakers, expressed concern at the response of the state.
“The money is there. It is about how we are actually distributing the money.”
Looking at wider issues such as immigration policy, Úna Boyd of the Committee on the Administration of Justice said devolution gave Northern Ireland authorities the flexibility to address a range of inequalities.
“I do think there is a capacity there to look at how devolved powers can be used to push for rights, to push for equality and this is where the pandemic has possibly offered an opportunity. Some departments have been willing to use their devolved powers in a creative way when dealing with covid issues. I would be quite hopeful that we can point to that and say, we know you can do it when you want to.”
Watch the discussion in full here:
Watch individual interviews with our international speakers here:
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