CW/TW: The following blog post discusses language to do with Covid-19. If you’re fed up with reading content about Coronavirus or are suffering from mental health because of quarantine, then click away/back/off.
This blog post is VERY topical and comes off the back of a question I put up on a LinkedIn post that was spurred on by thoughts I’ve been having about how we as an international society are talking about the future of the pandemic we all currently find ourselves living in. Yes, we are living in uncertain times right now and now and again, like everyone else around the world, I do worry. But the words we are using and are being fed to us about what may arise as we go forth is NOT helping.
Life post-pandemic has been and is being described as “the new normal”, “business as usual”, “going back to normal” or “unprecedented”. In my opinion, these phrases are nonsense. Not just because they have become overused, negatively positive and empty, but because of my identity as a disabled woman. This makes the words: historic; ironic; agenda set; meaningless; ableist and; problematic. Let’s look at those whys in more detail.
Because It’s Historic
Although the terms normal, normality and norms in the way that we define them now was originated in the nineteenth century, the meaning has traversed throughout time. Divisions between people have been noted since antiquity – my favourite Biblical passage is Galatians 3.28: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male or female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.”
The divisions of humans, societal divisions, has turned into inequality. Conforming to the standard, not being different from it, is traditionally viewed as the compulsive way of being. Yet, one element of finding social groups is discovering the commonalities we have with one another and we are constantly adapting ourselves to become the best we can possibly be. In that sense, the binary of normal/abnormal, like most binaries, is actually fake – we all have our own concepts and opinions on what’s what.
The “new normal” phrase is also not new when related to the working world – it’s a term that was first used following the financial crashes in 2007/08 and 2012 that has become prevalent in other contexts to describe something that was once abnormal becoming or now seen as habitual. It’s even been used when talking about how technology has impacted society. In that case, is it only another form of business jargon that will return during and after every crisis we ever face? Is anything ever normal?
Because It’s Ironic
The response of business to that-which-we-are-all-going-through are obviously mixed depending on their scale, structure, finance and work-weight. People are being furloughed from their jobs left, right and centre and, although they will have their jobs to go back to, it’s certainly tough. Yet, some companies are adapting quickly and finding opportunities whilst in this so-called-crisis and that makes these linguistics turn slightly on their head.
As the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) state, “the future of work is now.” The working world, and society as a whole, is always going through change and will transform even more thanks to this situation that we all find ourselves in. The main point for all businesses, work, jobs, schools, universities, colleges, places of worship, shops, cinemas, leisure buildings, anything is adaptability. We must be flexible in a fast and kind manner. It’s why I think flexible work is even more important – I wrote a blog post on this topic near the end of last year which you can read here.
Because of Agenda Setting
Defined as the way in which news media report particular issues or stories influences the way in which public awareness and debate is shaped, the way Covid-19 is shaped both in present and future terms is heavily manipulated by the local, national and international media. Whether print, radio, television or online, the terms that I quote mentioned at the beginning of this blog post can be found all over.
Yes, I understand that it is probably a way to ease worry and create calm but, as James Temperton noted in his brilliant article for Wired UK, “there is too much news, but also there is no news”. No one knows anything about the future, it’s a guessing game for everyone including the press. We’ve got to think about the short and long terms at the same time. It’s a case of living in the moment whilst having a plan. Or as the brilliant Seth Godin puts it in his blog post from April 18th, “let the future take care of itself”.
Because They Lose Meaning
I’ve been reading over some of my old academic essays recently (as one does when you want to do some research and then remember you probably already have) and I found the following quotations from a paper I wrote on female disabled comedians and normative gender. I examined it by looking at the work of one comedian in particular – Francesca Martinez – and how she uses her disability to create connections with her audience. In an interview to promote her book “What the **** is Normal?” she states that “everyone is normal, and everyone’s life is normal to them” and “the label normal is really inaccurate and really misleading”.
Her argument could also be the case for “the new normal”, “unprecedented times” and “business as usual”. As Brandon Ambrosino points out in his brilliant piece on BBC Future about the terms normal/usual, “like many of our words, as soon as we begin thinking about it, it starts to fall apart at the seams”. They might be safe and familiar, states which as an autistic person I usually crave, but they also lose their meaning. Continuity is fine and the future will come but I think it might be time to start using different terminology.
Because It’s Ableist
Defined as one of the ideal images of society which creates separation but also fear, confusion and inadequacy, this whole situation that we find ourselves in has been given both positive and negative consequences for the disabled. As another binary that matches up with our monotonous society that celebrates power, it is of no surprise that, in her latest opinion piece for The Guardian, Frances Ryan argues that the disabled are being forgotten about within this pandemic.
All humans, abled and disabled, are being and will be affected by Covid-19. Again, it’s all about adjusting, something that we who are disabled do daily. “The new normal” is not new for us but is frequently part of our regular livelihoods. Disabled people must be included in the narrative within this situation we all find ourselves currently living in but everyone is at task to strongly alter how we all think, act and behave about and around one another. This links to an argument that disability is ubiquitous and affects everyone, making it normal.
Because It’s Problematic
This is the last point I want to make – “the new normal”, “going back to normal”, “business as usual” and “unprecedented times” are all problematic terminology. They are cliché. They are paradoxical. Will they all happen or not? I don’t know and neither does anyone else.
Hope you’ve enjoyed reading this post (if you have) and that there is somethings that you might agree and dispute over. Huge thanks to those that gave comment on my original LinkedIn post and to those that are linked within this post. Stay safe everyone.
Beth x