When the pandemic began I would never forget how violently people reacted. Every time I stopped by a grocery store , supermarket or any store the lines were all the way to the back of the store and the lines outside of the store were incredibly long; all you could think about was how long you’d be standing outside and when it was your turn to go in would you even walk out with what you needed. In march of 2020 there was a brawl in Australia over toilet paper. I saw this video going viral on all social media platforms. Three women were recorded fighting in Sydney . Police were called to the scene when they received multiple calls that a woman had been assaulted. The lady had a shopping cart filled with packs of toilet paper leaving the rack empty so another lady grabbed one from her cart and that’s when the fight started . In the video footage you hear “ I just wanted one packet ”. It was heartbreaking seeing people be inconsiderate and violent over necessities . Many stores were experiencing shortages on toilet paper, Lysol, disinfecting wipes, alcohol, hand sanitizer and more. It was like you hit the jackpot when you were able to get your hands on those things . Supermarkets were also experiencing shortage in water and meats , the shelves in supermarkets located by me were completely empty at one point. I barely found good meat or packs of water when I needed to go food shopping. I felt like I had won the lottery when I did find what I was looking for . This pandemic has taught me that people will turn against each other if they have to. Instead of coming together as a community and helping each other out I saw very few good Samaritans give away essential supplies to those in need during this pandemic.

For my primary source, I selected a photograph I took of the gate house area in LaGuardia Airport in mid March of 2020. In the picture it shows several employees, sitting around doing nothing at all, the whole airport was a “ghost town”, meaning there were no passengers to assist with there tickets and gate claims, or any questions in general. During this time we were all nervous, not just nervous about COVID-19 and from the horrific scenes in the news, but also as an 11 year veteran in the airline industry, our jobs were on the line because of the decrease in flying, fear of flying, and the travel restrictions of no flying. With the airline burning 35 million dollars a day how can they pay 80,000 employees system wide I told myself. The airline soon told us system wide that it’s recommended we take a leave of absence at least a year with no pay to save the company or else there would be cuts, not including the 25% cut in our salary we took already. All week I was on the phone with my work partner talking everyday trying to figure what’s the plan. All these thoughts came racing three my head. What are we going to do? Do you think we will be fired or let go since we have seniority? Why I didn’t finish college 13 years ago and became lawyer or something. My job made us an offer, hey said take the year off with no pay, and your still have flying benefits for you and your family as always, and you will still have full medical benefits and we will pay your medical as well. After talking with my family, my fiancé, my partner from work, I decided on March 26th 2020, I was going to take the leave of absence. A whole year later April 26th of 2021 I finally came back to work full time, and the airport passenger count is starting to increase. The reason why I seated this primary source is because I would like historians to know the insides that us airline employees faced during these challenging times. I know many airline companies asked Congress for help in payroll support for the employees which majority of them did get including us, but we never saw that payroll support, nor did they call us back Early to work since they got some kind of support from the government, instead that money went in the stock market, and for bonuses to the CEO, and managers in the company. While I am happy and very fortunate to be back at work, it was very challenging as I’m sure it was for everyone, but one good thing that came out of it, 13 years later, a year ago from today. I was able to join the family of bronx community college, and focus on my education while I was off.

Throughout medical history vaccinations have been imperative in order to fight diseases and viruses. As a child these vaccinations start at two months and tend to continue through our lives. Most vaccines are mandatory but there are some that are voluntary which leaves us contemplating our decision. The contemplation on getting a vaccine is why I chose a picture of my COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card to be submitted as my primary source. When COVID first hit the United States, we weren’t really prepared for the devastation that it brought right along with it. When I first heard about COVID it still hadn’t reached the United States and that was around January but then around March New York started going into lockdown. The lockdown period was pretty difficult to deal with as the way of life completely changed. Mentally, emotionally and physically it took a toll on me. As a person that was barely at home because of school and work the lock down caused great anxiety. From the moment the world heard about the first case it went into creating a vaccine that could prevent the number of cases of deaths and hospitalizations from increasing. As pharmaceutical companies started the research to create a vaccine, I was pretty skeptical about it. I was refusing to get the vaccine if they succeeded in creating it because there was just so much doubt going through my head. I was unsure what the vaccine contained and if it would work in the prevention of catching COVID. But long behold a vaccine was created but of course there were so many side effects that came with the shot. With everything that was going wrong with the vaccine during the experimentation period it just strengthened my decision to decline the shot. My views started to change once I started to hear that many people weren’t getting any symptoms from the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines. These vaccines required the person to receive two doses in order to be “immune” to COVID. Another reason that caused me to change my views on receiving the shot was the fact that I wanted to travel, and the government was requiring a vaccination passport in order to do so. The first dose of vaccines was only available to the elderly and to the healthcare workers who were risking their lives coming into contact with COVID patients. Then they started extending the qualifications needed for someone to receive the shot which included: preexisting conditions, obesity, high risk conditions, and many other qualifications. These are just of the few qualifications that was asked for in order for someone to be eligible to receive a vaccination. Because I have a preexisting condition, I was eligible to receive the COVID 19 vaccine. It was pretty difficult trying to get an appointment due to the high volume of people who wanted to receive the shot. After multiple attempts in trying to secure my appointment, I succeed with Walmart. I received my first Moderna vaccination on March 12, 2021 and my second vaccination on April 23, 2021. I was content on receiving the Moderna vaccine because it wasn’t recalled for causing health problems like the rest of the vaccinations from other pharmaceutical companies were causing. After a few hours of receiving my first shot I started to feel dizzy and very lightheaded to the point that I couldn’t drive at work. With the second shot my symptoms were: dizziness, fever, body aches, chills, change of smell and taste and nausea. The second shot was stronger than the first one but I’m glad that those were the only symptoms I experienced. But the one thing that both shots had in common after receiving them was the soreness of the arm for multiple days. Now that is has been almost a month that I received my second shot almost all the symptoms have vanished except for my change of smell and taste. Because the shot as altered my sense of smell and taste it has made it unbearable for me to smell or eat meat but I’m hoping that it will subside soon. The decision on receiving the COVID 19 vaccine is a daunting one to make as there can be many factors that can influence you. I received the vaccine as a precaution to myself and others. I also took it in order to travel and not worry about being prevented from boarding a flight because I can’t provide proof of the vaccination record card. I think this new vaccine is going to be a lot like the Flu shot as it comes in seasons and its up to the person to decide whether or not they’re going to get it. I’m just happy that the government hasn’t made it mandatory because there is still a lot of people who are pretty skeptical about it. The decision of our life is in a needle.

I chose this photo because of the differences between a before and after the pandemic. I took the first photo from Google, from an article titled "What Keeps People Coming Back to a Restaurant?" (Carol Lin Vieira) because I do not have an old one where access to eat was allowed, since for me it was common. The second photo was taken at my current job, it is located at 2065 Jerome Ave, Bronx, NY 10453. Before the pandemic started, we could go out and share with our families and friends, we could order food and eat in the restaurant, hang out, have fun and laugh, no need to be making reservations all the time. The pandemic changed our lives in a whole new way. Before we could be in groups and go to the park without the need to worry about whether other people could infect us. We had so much more fun because we didn't have to worry about whether restaurants would be open or not, whether we could go out and eat quietly away from home. During the pandemic, we can no longer do these kinds of things because we are separated. This is something sad, not being able to see your friends or family for fear of infecting us or infecting the people we love. Not being able to shake hands, give hugs, kisses on the face or share our food with other people. It makes me nostalgic to see how in my work the tables are empty and it is forbidden to eat, to remember how the restaurant was full with many people who laughed and told how their day, shared stories or dated someone. It is hard to listen to the sad voices of the customers when they ask when they can go eat. As I mentioned earlier, COVID-19 left many losses and many broken hearts along the way, it is a disease in which it showed us the value that each person has. Sometimes as teenagers we do not realize what we have, I chose this photo as an example of how little we valued the little things before and now we really need it. A single walk without a mask, sitting in large groups with your family in a restaurant, being next to someone who has already died due to this disease, among many other details. I think everything happens for a reason and from something so negative we learned something positive, we learned to appreciate the little things in life, to be more united with the family and to love more every day.

For my primary source, I selected a photograph that my cousin from coney island sent me to join her to protest. The protest was on July 15, 2021, from 1 pm to 5 pm. The march’s purpose was in the memory of the African Americans that were murder by police brutality. The protest was a peaceful demonstration where the community complained that the problem is getting bigger every day. Therefore, the government needed to corporate to diminish the violence and racism toward black people. The march has two purposes the first one to protest that black lives matter and that it was not okay to kill somebody because of their skin color, and it was also to complain about police use of force towards minorities. 2020 was a year where many innocent people were killed, for example, Rashard brooks, Daniel Prude, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor. Those victims were not just killed by the police but were killed being innocent and doing ordinary people stuff which makes us think that the problem comes from police racism. I wanted to assist in the protest, but my father said straight up no because of covid 19 pandemic was at its worse moment, and the crowding is was going to be an easy way to catch the virus. I kept insisting until I got permission to go. I took three trains to get to my cousin’s house. First, I took train A to Columbus circle, then train D to the new york aquarium, and last train Q to ocean parkway where my cousin was waiting for me, and we went to the protest. It was not a big protest because most people who assist were people from the area, but it was peaceful. They were all screaming, “not justice, no peace.” the environment did no felt uncomfortable because they were energetic and getting the anger out by marching for the victims. The police of coney island and Brighton beach were present, ensuring that people maintain order and supporting the march. The social distancing was followed, and all the participants were wearing a mask. I felt good because I did not participate in the protest in my area, but I was present in other parts of the state. I selected this source because I want historians of the future to analyze that the country was active and acting against the problem. Racism is a global problem. It can be controlled if we unify and try to make others conscious that it is not okay to judge somebody else because of the way they look or their nationality. The communities were getting together to announce that they needed our support to solve the problem and eliminate conflicts with people equal like us but with a tiny skin color difference. Racism is so intense that people need to go outside in the middle of a pandemic to protest and moderate the issue. We were exposed to the virus because the violence toward minorities is increasing in the country. It looks like the only way it can be moderate is by going outside to show the dominant group that we have a voice.

Primary Source Essay Wildania Hernandez The primary source I’m using for this project is a picture of my family on a zoom call celebrating my father’s birthday on march 12, 2020. This is how my family and myself had to gather together to actually spend some time since the virus started. Our family is a very united family, we are very close and before COVID-19 started we used to get together in somebody’s house and just cook and dance and talk, and enjoy every second of it but everything changed when the virus started it was spreading too fast, and everybody was scared. I remember how my mom was always watching the news and you could see all the videos of all those people that died in Queens and they had so many bodies that they didn't have a place to put them. Funeral homes were full and all I could think was about those families who lost a loved one and how some people were thinking that COVID was fake. The first time we use zoom was to celebrate my father’s birthday, it was something new and not something like we usually do but at least we got to see some of our family members. We were always home since we stopped working because of the pandemic. We used to work for a medical transportation company so we were “Essentials Workers”, we transport people to get dialysis treatment 3 times a week and after the virus started to get stronger we had to stop working because almost every patient we transported died of COVID-19 before the wave of summer even started. Sadly the COVID ended the life of two members in my family, at the end of June we got the news that one of my aunts was at the hospital on life support, three weeks later one of my uncle was in the same situation. We couldn't see them or say goodbye, everything just happened so fast that we were in shock and this is how we started our “Weekly zoom meetings”. The reason why I selected this source is because I want to show historians of the future how families use to communicate in a group without getting together. We used this tool to so much that we had an schedule, every Friday we had a zoom meeting to just talk about our week. To talk about our different point of view of the pandemic and not only that but all of the events that happened last year, like the protest that started shortly after George Floyd was killed, and the election in November but most importantly those zoom meetings was just to make sure that everybody was good and to support each other since some of my family members were still working outside. Crazy how everything started last year and now we have a vaccine and hopefully everything will go back to normal in no time but for now we need to live with the memory of what started in the year 2020 that affected the whole world.

For my primary source, I selected an essay that was written by me my first semester in my Psychology class. I don’t exactly know the date it was made or submitted, there were question we were supposed to respond in our own way but it’s not able to be provided anymore. But we wrote it as a final in order to express the way we felt during the pandemic, also to see how our mental and our physical changes during this rough time. My professor which was called Dr. Marjorie wanted to know everyone’s story in our own words and the different perspectives that came from the students, which she enjoyed doing. I lived in New York the area of the country hardest hit by the first wave of the pandemic. I was afraid when the outbreak got worse day by day, watching how this changed every human being because no one was prepared for all this chaos that was happening. I didn’t know on March 10 that this outbreak was on campus which is why we couldn’t come back until further notice to protect us from contracting COVID. Seeing the news and watching the death tolls go up by the hour of the amount of people dying in the hospitals and others contracting the virus was horrifying and sad to watch. That’s all they gave on the news which made me paranoid and decided to stop watching it during the entire quarantine. The way I saw how the streets were empty, New York wasn’t the same anymore it looked very dull and sad as if it was the end of the world not seeing anyone outside walking or any cars either. Everything was limited especially in the supermarkets having a limit capacity of people in it, the long lines were unbearable. Not being able to go out being of how paranoid I was being around people, I lasted about 1 month and 3 days home without going out only when it was necessary to go out. I selected this important source because I want historians of the future to understand my situation as a college student living through this pandemic. Having to go from classes in person to virtual classes in a snap of a finger that’s when my frustration started, not being able to understand anything without seeing the professor to explain it to me. I had to do everything on my own without anyone’s help. Stressing me out completely, which caused drastic changes to me during quarantine. My appetite wasn’t at its best having to do so much work at a time with all my classes especially being a full time student wasn’t easy for me because I never took breaks only when I was called to eat. My body started to fail on me feeling weak, tired, and constant headaches. That’s when it all went downhill my anxiety started to crawl up on me, I didn’t know how to control it anymore because coping with it was difficult having all of these constant breakdowns, feeling tight to the chest and shaking as if I was nervous. I’ll have all that through the stress and overthinking it caused because I didn’t want to feel like a failure. Putting pressure on myself caused lots of harm which had consequences to it later on. Then I started to lose weight, not being able to wake up the same anymore as if I had no energy to do anything throughout the day. I was afraid of having a panic/anxiety attack which were the worse. I endured depression along the way as well, I started to get sick out of nowhere without having anything. The pandemic really messed me up mentally.

A video of the riots that took place in Fordham Road during summer of 2020.

For my primary sources I chose pictures that I took with my friend and family through covid pandemic and my first trip to my country which is Dominican Republic at July 4, 2020, and it did not feel the same because some people were afraid of hug me, talk to me and even I could see them put their mask on when they saw me coming to their way and I do not really blame them because even i was afraid to hug my significant ones because I know that the time we were going through it was a lot for them, I am not going to lie, I was scared to go out because everytime that I watched the news just I heard that millions people died from Covid and that did not give comfort to go out because I did not want to get my family and friends sick. At july 20th I traveled for first time in the pandemic and it did not feel great because the looks that people used to give me when I cough or sneeze it was like if I came from another place, I did not enjoy this vacation the wanted because I could not see the people i wanted to see and the people I saw were scared of me because of Covid. I selected this source because I want to show the historians in the future the struggles and the loss that many people had in 2020 because of Covid, for example the students had to take classes from their home which is basically teaching ourselves, people lost their jobs because the economic went down and there was not enough budget to pay the employers because the Country was not prepared for this situation, and that many people lost members of their family, this was a difficult time for all of us.

This is my first day back from the new year and I am making my resolutions. I had recently found out that Stefan and Hudson play tennis which is a sport I used to play. I also just finished music class where we played the piano and I thought it was really fun so I wanted to get into it. Tyler 1/4/21 New Orleans, LA Coronavirus Journal I am going to start playing tennis again. I used to play it, but because of covid I stopped taking lessons and never really got back into it. I am also getting into piano, so my mom said she could get me some lessons for that. I don't know if I will have time to do these both considering the fact that I have baseball 3 days a week and workouts 2 days a week, but I will try and make it work. Piano is also an old habit as I played it a couple years ago. I didn't really know much, but now I understand the piano and not just memorize the notes, so I think I could be successful in getting much better at piano by taking lessons. I also hope that I will improve more than I did at tennis the first time. But of course this will all take a lot of hard work and practice. Stefan and Hudson also play tennis and they play each other sometimes, so I hope that once I am good enough I will be able to beat them. I will need to remind my mom that I want to begin practicing these things though as I think she forgot to sign me up for piano lessons and about me playing tennis in general. I am excited to start practicing these things and improve. Especially tennis because I haven't played in a long time and I really enjoy it.

This is near the beginning of the school year. I am still settling into 8th grade and am yet used to life during coronavirus. This is the first birthday I have had to celebrate over zoom which was really weird. This is still the stage of Coronavirus Journals where I say what I ate for lunch. Tyler 9/18/20 New Orleans, LA Coronavirus Journal Today is Friday, and Rosh Hashanah. I don’t think my family will celebrate though. I know we will be celebrating my grandpa’s birthday tonight over a zoom dinner. I am really excited to talk to my grandparents because I haven’t spoken to them for a long time because of covid. Today I woke up at 7:48 am and I am really lucky that we have til 8:15 to get to school because I would have definitely been late. Yesterday I had a baseball scrimmage and did pretty well. Today for lunch I had a turkey and swiss cheese sandwich and some barbecue chips. I am pretty lucky to have no homework today since I had Science, History, and Band.

This was the first day of school of 8th grade and the whole mask thing and all of the precautions were new to me as we just got out of quarantine. I didn’t know what to expect as the outcome of the year and was just taking it all in. Tyler 9/1/20 New Orleans, LA Coronavirus Journal Today I ate a turkey and swiss cheese sandwich for lunch. I ate with my advisory. I had drama today and we played “Greetings Your Majesty”, which is basically where you come behind somebody and say “greetings your majesty” with a weird voice. If they guess who said that to them they get to stay as majesty, but If they don't then the person who spoke gets to be majesty. There is a jester who chooses who gets to go. After school today I am going to Coach Luke for pitching lessons instead of travel baseball practice because we already said we would go to pitching. Of course before that I will do my homework and if I don't finish before I leave for practice I will finish it after school. Today wasn't very special in any sort, but last Saturday was my Bar Mitzvah which was on zoom and my Bar Mitzvah party which only had like 6 kids. Last Thursday I turned 13 years old. In Docs class today we watched him do an experiment from 2 years ago and answered questions about it. On a sadder note - the actor who played Balck Panther - Chadwick Boseman died last Friday at the age of 43. I had recess in the Valmont Courtyard today and I played taps, wallball, and four square. Because of the pandemic we played foursquare using only our feet and heads. I didn't play taps and wall ball for long because a lot of people joined. Today was a pretty normal day, but a crazy week.

Getting my Covid vaccine.

I selected primary sources on my personal experience of the covid-19 pandemic as an essential worker. I was employed by Autozone which was qualified to be essential to the public and for that time period where majority of my friends where at home quarantined, I was constantly at work due to the fact that many of my fellow co-workers at the time either caught covid or had a medical excuse to stay home. Life as an essential worker was very hard at the time because I had to take care of my health as much as I could so I wouldn't impact the people who lived at home. At the time I lived at home with my mother and my pregnant sister so I took extra precautions every day whether it was wearing two masks at work, constantly washing my hands and trying everything possible to stay healthy just so I wouldn't impact anyone at home. Working almost 6 days a week and going to school remotely was hard but I made an agreement with my professors at the time to make exceptions regarding classes because I explained due to the pandemic I was essential and I was required to work more due to the lack of workers. Life during this pandemic was interesting being stopped by the cops after curfew cause we closed a little later then we were supposed to and just being no traffic out on the road going home from work. I legitimately had to work 6 days a week and be tired constantly while hearing my friends say they were tired of being home. I Submitted a meme I had on my phone my older sister had sent me as a joke because while she was working from home, I had to go out and work. The meme was funny to me and I felt it was perfect for this project because as a Full time student during the pandemic I was working full time. I always would brag about working during the pandemic and doing school work because the majority of my friends were doing bad in school and I was able to keep up with both.

Dealing with Covid at work has been the worst thing that has happened to me. I was at work and had just found out that one of my close co-workers had tested positive for Covid. I was shock. Everyone at my job was scared but in honest truth I was just relax because I knew I didn't have it. Thought wrong. A week after I started to feel a little light headed but I figured it was normal. I had went to go get tested just in case and believe it or not my test came back Positive as well.

For my primary source, I selected a screenshot of me and my mom while we talked through Facetime. In this facetime we were in the same house but unable to see each other in person since she was infected with the covid-19 virus. Apparently, my mother became ill with covid-19 while celebrating the end of 2020 with close relatives, they were around 6 members of my family and they decided to go celebrate that day since they had not seen each other for a long time. That day I was working at night and cannot go to the party. Well, on the first of January I couldn't go to my house either since my co-workers called out and I had to do a double shift. I left the first of January around 3:00 pm from my work, before arriving at my house my mother called me and told me that she was not feeling well and that she believed that she was infected with covid because she had all the symptoms related to this virus. She went to do the test so I went to my girlfriend's house to wait for my mother to call me to confirm what we already suspected, around 5:00 pm she called me to tell me that she, my aunt and my cousin were positive . We could not leave our house for 16 days and only seeing each other through Facetime. I remember we took turns using the kitchen or leaving our rooms. To use the bathroom, we each entered with a Lysol to disinfect before and after using it. We used gloves and a mask when we left our rooms, so that I would not get infected. Today, 5 months later, my mother is still suffering the consequences of being infected, she gets tired when she walks for a long time and is in training since she has bacteria in the lungs as a result of covid-19. I decided to select this screenshot as my source because it represents what many people went through during the pandemic. Family that lasted months without seeing each other when before the pandemic they saw each other every day and grandparents without knowing their newborn grandchildren were some of the scenes that we could see during the pandemic. I am the only son of my mother and we have a remarkably close relationship. Never in our lives would we have lasted so long without seeing each other in person and without having hugged each other, it was very painful.

Living during the pandemic, everyday felt like yesterday. The same things happened over and over again. It left me pondering when things will ever get back to normal. But even if things did get back to normal, these normal things will happen everyday. What makes the pandemic so different? The pandemic and COVID made me realize the many things I took for granted: seeing my friends and family, going outside for fun, going to school in-person, and much more. This is why I chose this post. Today, it is so true that the real world is an escape from the internet, especially with all of the Zoom and online learning, going outside is a pleasure.

Hi! My name is Wendy! Right after a normal weekend in March, I never expected that we would switch to online learning. I was shocked to see the email in the picture on March 13th, saying that we would no longer go back to normal school. This screenshot is very important to me since it made me realize that Covid-19 was a bigger issue than I thought. There was talk of a new illness (Covid-19), but I honestly didn’t feel like it would turn into a whole pandemic. I was kind of thankful since I had a dentist appointment on Monday that would’ve made me be absent from class, but all the cons of Covid-19 outweighed the benefits. The first few weeks were awful- it was hard to adapt to the constant isolation, and being with my family all day was tiring. Also, school wasn’t as engaging or fun anymore. We weren’t able to connect with our teachers or talk to our friends in class. Furthermore, seeing the news and how thousands of people were dying was very frightening. But it's been more than a year of online school, and I found out that what helped me cope was the small things like texting my friends on Discord, hanging out (with masks and 6 feet apart obviously), and exploring things that I couldn’t do before quarantine like drawing or playing the piano. Of course, there were days where I was fed up with being inside or when I felt depressed, but making the most out of this situation gave me the drive to keep social distancing. So remember to keep wearing masks, keeping 6 feet apart, and get vaccinated! This lack of social interaction and not being able to go to school or public places normally is unfortunate but we must stay away from each other to stay together. When it gets hard, find ways to connect with others through safe means like social media and use all that free time to improve and discover things about yourself.

I took this picture on May 29, 2020, at 10:35 am. Why I choose this picture? This picture reflected my feeling in 2020. After months without going outside, I was heading to Staten Island to visit my aunt. I remember that I had anxiety even to open the door of my apartment. Whenever I went outside, it was close to my apartment, and my skin started to itch for no reason. My family used to watch the news the whole day. I was tired of listening to the report. Besides, during COVID-19, I was having an awful time. A few months ago, one of my friends died, and It was depressing for me. Before she died, I let my ego break the relationship between us. I refused to call her or text her because I was tired of looking after her. I remember my father told me to call her because I did not know what was happening with her. I ignored him. Riding to Staten Island that morning made me remember the hard time that I was going through. The day that I went to Staten Island, it was cloudy and dark. I thought that the ferry would sink into the water. When I got to Staten Island, it started to rain, and I did not bring an umbrella. I was mad, but it was my fault for not checking the weather. I compare that dark and desperate day with the mourning of my friend and the pandemic. For months, I felt guilty and thought that I did not deserve anything good in my life. The worst of all of this is that I did not have anybody to talk to. I was in quarantine for months, and it affected my mental health. I had no desire to continue college and my business. I used to cry a lot, and all I wanted was to talk to someone about how the pandemic and the death of my friend affected me. I had desired to go to the Dominican Republic, but I could not go. I think that this source can help historians because they can get to know about different perspectives of people during the COVID-19 pandemic. They would notice the anxiety that not only I went through, but everybody around the world had been through. My neighborhood was affected significantly. Some of my neighbors got COVID and died from it. I know that many people saw themselves as the picture. They thought that everything around them was going to end. They thought that they would be stuck in the pandemic forever.

The beginning of 2020 was as any other year with dancing and drinking to wash away the old with the expectations for another beginning. Much to our dismay that we would be carrying on a bad dream simultaneously. A year unafraid, no bias, everything began in Spring with the information on an incredible mutated infection, which caused a lot of causalities, and an uprising dread that detained us in our homes. Startlingly, exactly when I figured things couldn't deteriorate, 2020 threw an inconvenient passing which spiraled into an overall dissent. Holding back to have this nightmare that felt like a dream to be finished, I figured out how to value the smallest things around me.

A father teaching his son about the Corona virus and how to adapt to his New environment.

The experience of being a priest during the pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has unleashed global havoc and has already resulted in millions of deaths. To deal with difficult scenario created by the pandemic, in this paper, inspiration is taken from “Stockdale Paradox” to derive ten lessons. These lessons are precious in the current scenario and discuss in detail the various issues and challenges with solutions. The lessons are useful for anyone in successfully dealing with brutal facts of pandemic and overcome the odds

It is about my predictions for the future of the world

It is about me going back to school after choosing virtual school for the first few weeks

It is about me getting covid and my pretty mild experience with it

REP. MINORITY LEADER, NO BALLOT FRAUD

Biden, Trump, same on Iran

From being on campus the last day of March 9th, 2020 to being on zoom classes and forced to get "vaxxed" is like making me want to give up on my education. This is significant because in this new world, they are requiring vaccinations upon students as if we have no say, even some professors I know are not comfortable with being coerced into taking this shot. But we want our old life back and we want to be back on campus, but its so significant because there are so many what-ifs. There will be so much restrictions and requirements if campuses open back up, they will definitely have so many precautions which makes people unmotivated. I miss my old life, bothering my professors during their office hours and going to the library to study, or even going to tutoring. Campus was my only escape, I think its important to me that we shed a light on this because this pandemic shows how, us citizens, really have no freedom when we are being forced to get a vaccination that may make us more sick because it is not FDA approved.

When the Covid-19 pandemic caused New York City to go into lockdown the second week of March, it never once crossed my mind how large of an impact this shutdown would have in my personal life. In the picture below I show a poem I wrote during the sixth month of quarantine: My days felt like they were going on a loop. Everyday felt like a continuation of the day before and my mind was tired of it. In my poem I expressed that I felt like a bird that crashes on the windshield of a car, signaling the repetitiveness of my life in my small NYC apartment. I think that this time was one of the most difficult times for my mental health and I tried desperately to find a way of coping. Essentially, this poem represents the mental state I found myself in trying to find different ways to deal with the fact that life had paused abruptly and that nothing was certain anymore. One of the ways that I found myself doing a lot during this time was sleeping. I began to get worried when one day I woke up at 4pm and felt as if I had woken up at 9am. I knew my sleep schedule was a disaster, but I think that this represents how monotone life felt. On another hand, I think that the lockdown served as an opportunity to reorganize my priorities and discover new likes and dislikes. Since I had recently changed my major from Biology to English, this time helped me realize how much I enjoy writing and learning about other writers and their work. I never thought I would enjoy my major as much as I am enjoying it, especially since I can dedicate more time on it thanks to the spare time staying at home gives me. I think that this poem will benefit future historians in their study of the effects the COVID-19 lockdown on people’s mental health. Specifically, historians will be able to be exposed to the anxiety the world felt knowing that there was little we could do to reverse the effects the lockdown was having in our mental stability. Basically, historians will be able to analyze how much the pandemic affected us beyond the physical aspect but the detrimental effects it held against our mental health. All in all, COVID-19 surely fits the line by Charles Dickens, “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times”.

Dear Historians of the Future, In 2020, there was a pandemic that occurred known as COVID-19 that made drastic changes in terms of restaurants, traveling internationally, school and work. One of my biggest pieces of advice is to ensure the president you have is not a narcissist or a leader who does not take responsibility for the bad things that happen. According to the article “Donald Trump owns the Coronavirus,” published on March 9, 2020, by a senior economist Dean Baker, this document explains how COVID impacted the community and what experiences people faced. Reading this article will allow you to understand the ability to have directorship in guiding the country to a better path then shifting it to the left. For instance, the reading states “It is very likely that we will face a recession as people cancel travel plans and are reluctant to go out to restaurants, sporting events and other public places.” Because of Trump, Americans and the people that live in it had to cancel many of their plans as a result of Trump not taking accurate information into consideration. He was mainly focused on putting blame towards China or the democrats, rather than looking for solutions with CDC. During the pandemic, many people believed Donald Trump was responsible for the Coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. in the article, Baker concludes: “In short, the fact that we are likely facing a serious pandemic, unlike any we have seen in more than a century, is 100 percent Trump’s fault. Because of his vanity and ineptitude, people will die, and many more will get sick.” This article demonstrates how Trump did not care to take action when the pandemic initially began. Because of this, one can say when it comes to having a narcissist president like Trump, leadership plays a role in situations like this for the world. In conclusion, I chose this source to explain my experience of the pandemic and what challenges people faced. In other words, this article will help you understand how the pandemic had an impact on many people's lives. If president Trump initially took action when he first started receiving news about the COVID, people would still be employed and parents would not have to stay home with their children. The negative aspect of this is some families struggled financially as a result of the pandemic and staying unemployed.

The pandemic left me feeling very depressed and alone after losing what was left of my senior year. This all changed though when my family and I started hiking. Every day we would hike a new trail in the town in which I grew up in. On these trails is where I truly strengthened my relationship with my family members. We truly bonded with one another throughout our long hikes. These hikes made also gave me time to reflect on myself and where I was at that point in time. Throughout these hikes I was able to set some goals for myself on where I wanted to be in my future. It is definitely safe to say that I have achieved these goals as well up to this point. In all, I truly would not trade these long hikes for anything in the world. These hikes they really changed my outlook on life and it was here that I truly was able to strengthen my relationship with my family members.

During the pandemic, I was had more free time. When quarantine started, I was just using my phone all day since I couldn't go out, however, I became tired of just using my phone all day. At first, I didn't know how I could cope with my boredom, but then I remembered the instruments I had my ukulele and guitar. I started playing my ukulele first since I already had some experience doing so, and I improved, learning new strumming patterns and songs every week. However, I ran out of songs to learn, so I went to my guitar, which was a struggle to learn at first. I started out with some basic chords that allowed me to play plenty of songs, and I built up from there trying new complex chords. Playing these instruments gave me something to look forward to when I started quarantine since I had more time I knew what to do with, but now playing instruments has become a regular hobby. Quarantine was tough for people worldwide as we were separated from friends and loved ones, but I believe with the extra free time people are able to work and improve themselves, making them more interesting individuals.

My first mask was given to me by my dad.

Where to even start? 2020, the year where everything and everyone changed forever. 2020 did not just consist of the Covid Virus it consisted of many other threads that harmed everyone’s mental health including students. It was hard for all students during this time but in my perspective College students. This documents faithfully explain 2020 and I will be here to give you future historians a more in depth look at how it really was during these times. The document I chose not only explains how we went from going in person to virtual but also how it made me feel as a visual learner and as a college student of course. CUNY mentioned we were going to have a “Instructional recess from March 12-18th”, this day I will never forget because I did not know that March 11th was going to be the last day of my two-years of college. When I received this email on Twitter that CUNY had stated this I was overwhelmed and shocked. The thought of everything being virtual just didn’t seem right to me, although I did have all the access from computers to internet access, it just did not sit right. As a visual learner this was tough for me, this was a moment of you get classwork and you basically have to teach it to yourself, not seeing my professors in person and through a screen was very hard to get used to, the internet sometimes would not work and it would cut off and I would miss most of the important things said during the lesson, it was honestly very difficult, this was not just tough on students, as well as professors having the same issues. This era was honestly tough, but technology really saved a whole year worth of schoolwork. To the historians reading this in a couple of years from now, I, as a person who lived through these times want you to understand the rough time we went through, from masks to face shields to many deaths and virtually going to school. These were moments in time that no one anticipated. It shaped the future into what it had become, masks may become the new norm, working from home may be allowed for certain jobs and companies, schools just might let people continue to be fully virtual and things may be extremely dependent on technology from now on. To conclude this 2020 document, though it was a rough year where millions of people died worldwide, I can only be thankful that me and the ones I love are safe and okay. We now know how to take proper precautions in case anything like this happens again, though I don’t wish for a repeat of 2020. The year of 2020 is one for the books and one that will go down in history.

I assume like many New Yorkers, March 13th through 18th was when things really changed. It did for me on the 15th of March 2020 or the ides of March as I like to remember it. My store shut down for what seemed like 2 weeks. Of course, soon I would be given the news we would be shut down completely. I already knew where things were going, at the time I worked at an Asian restaurant, so I was hearing many of the conversations about China then. But I could not have predicted what would happen next. As slow and dreadful as 2020 was, things were moving at lightning speed for the situation we experienced. It felt like every few days something new would arise and test our nation. I selected these pictures because it shows how tired everyone is, the blank faces of people who are following orders, while the other side expresses their hardships all the while wearing masks, the bane of 2020. I want the historian of the future to know that no matter the situation at hand, many of us will still protest for what was wrong even if they got sick. It didn’t matter because we needed to send a message. The two images that you see in the beginning were taken by my friend, Emilio Lopez, who documented the protests, riots, and clashes between police in the summer of 2020. I did not go to the early protests because of covid and the violence/looting wasn’t the things I wanted to be a part of. I remember face-timing my friend to make sure if he was alright as I did not go with him. What he described to me that was happening in the parts of Fordham, and Union Square areas. Emilio had said many of the protesters were young men who were bored of the lockdowns and needed to do something exciting. There were fires, baton exchanges with the cops, and then the looting started. It all got a little too ugly for the whole week of George Floyd protests in New York. One of my close friend’s stores in Fordham was destroyed as a result. The images were taken right before things took a violent turn at Union Square. Where many of my friends were tear-gassed and beaten by cops to disperse when the first lockdown was getting implemented. Those two images, I feel like the body language of the subjects conveys how I felt about the lockdowns, the social injustice, in general about 2020. These were the first few weeks of protests that took place in the wake of George Fyold murder. I was shocked and scared when the masses went on to the streets because of the sheer amount while the pandemic was still going on. I hope the historians of the future can understand us even if they have to go through a cluster of memes from this era, real pictures with real human emotions will always speak louder I believe, and that civil rights in this country still have ways to go.

I think we all should take this as an experience to be prepare for the next major event.

I'm submitting a picture of doctors, including my uncle and members of the community gathered outside of the SUNY Downstate Medical Center University Hospital, to celebrate the discharge of a patient who beat Covid-19.

Hi! My name is Wendy! Right after a normal weekend in March, I never expected that we would switch to online learning. I was shocked to see the email in the picture on March 13th, saying that we would no longer go back to normal school. This screenshot is very important to me since it made me realize that Covid-19 was a bigger issue than I thought. There was talk of a new illness (Covid-19), but I honestly didn’t feel like it would turn into a whole pandemic. I was kind of thankful since I had a dentist appointment on Monday that would’ve made me be absent from class, but all the cons of Covid-19 outweighed the benefits. The first few weeks were awful- it was hard to adapt to the constant isolation, and being with my family all day was tiring. Also, school wasn’t as engaging or fun anymore. We weren’t able to connect with our teachers or talk to our friends in class. Furthermore, seeing the news and how thousands of people were dying was very frightening. But it's been more than a year of online school, and I found out that what helped me cope was the small things like texting my friends on Discord, hanging out (with masks and 6 feet apart obviously), and exploring things that I couldn’t do before quarantine like drawing or playing the piano. Of course, there were days where I was fed up with being inside or when I felt depressed, but making the most out of this situation gave me the drive to keep social distancing. So remember to keep wearing masks, keeping 6 feet apart, and get vaccinated! This lack of social interaction and not being able to go to school or public places normally is unfortunate but we must stay away from each other to stay together. When it gets hard, find ways to connect with others through safe means like social media and use all that free time to improve and discover things about yourself.

Interviewee discussed what life is like graduating during the pandemic, working in a small family-owned business and the pushback against COVID safety in Orange County. She describes how the pandemic has brought her family together along with the tight-knit community with similar social values she has created.

For my primary source, I selected a photograph I took at a protest held in front of the Bronx Community College campus on July 15, 2021. The Professional Staff Union of CUNY (PSC-CUNY), the union for the faculty and much of the staff throughout CUNY, organized the event to protest the BCC administration June 26 decision to lay off 36 experienced adjunct professors at the end of their 3-year contracts, even though that their departments recommended that they be rehired. People in the picture include BCC Faculty, staff, and students, as well as those from as well as people from Hostos Community College, who came to support the BCC community and were facing similar cuts. The day was very hot, but I was nervous to the subway because of COVID, so I rode my bike from my home (about 24 miles roundtrip). I was pretty sweaty and probably stinky when I arrived. It was the first time I had been to campus since March 10, when, on my way home from school on the subway, I learned CUNY was moving online. (The campus itself was locked, but we stood in front of the gate on University.) It was also the first time I people from school in person since March; I was so happy to talk to them. It was weird to be with a group people, after months of isolation, but we all wore masks and stood six feet apart. Cars honked their support as they drove by. I selected this source because I want historians of the future to understand how the pandemic hit higher education and the connections among the COVID crisis, social justice movements, and education. Although I went to larger marches after the murder of George Floyd, I believe funding for CUNY is a form of social justice. I was angry that politicians and school administrators were giving lip-service to the phrase Black Live Manners, while cutting funding and jobs from CUNY. BCC’s students are overwhelmingly Black and Latinx, and many studies show that a CUNY education is one of the best schools for supporting social mobility, helping people support themselves and their families. Firing the adjuncts not only meant the teachers lost their income, and, sometimes, their health insurance, but that BCC students would be in larger classes; larger classes mean faculty have less time to devote to each student, which can make it harder to for students to succeed. While I understood enrollment was down and the budget from the city and state would likely be smaller because of the economic toll of the pandemic, I thought there were other places the administration could cut costs. (Such as their own salaries). I want historians to see that the faculty and staff of CUNY fought for what their students deserved and the connections among CUNY, social justice, and New York’s economic recovery. I also want them to see how people approached protests, which require gathering together with other people and often chanting or shouting, while in the middle of a pandemic that required people to stay apart and cover their mouths.

A 2-week lockdown. That was how it started. Logging on to discord and joining my friends conversation about how fast it would pass, happy to get a break from school. Another a couple months later, we are stuck at home, waiting for everything to end. School was now online, and I didn’t have any fun waiting around for the classes to end. I started calling more people, hoping they could play any games online to relieve the boredom. The same schedule every single day. Wakeup, eat, go to class, finish homework, play some games, call friends, do chores, go to sleep. Every single day, and it wasnt like I could do something different. It would’ve been nice to do something different, even if it was just going to a store if I wasn’t busy. It still is being repetitive, which is fine. I can at least play some more games, since my friends and I are finding more. It isn’t as boring as the beginning, but its meh. Some of the best moments, were when we went to the mountains, which was pretty far, but was still fun to go to with family.

This piece of writing explains what I wish I could do after the pandemic ends.

My work ends here on 5/15/2021, I have curated on this website for 2 semesters at ASU and have read sad stories, funny stories, stories that are strange, and people who seem so lost, It was a nice refresher to see how people reacted to pandemic a lot more than my old job which was captioning hard of hearing people's phone calls. I heard so much more death and depressing tales there than in this archive which I find interesting but I have seen many sides of the pandemic. I did have to caption, not once but twice, old people having phone sex from that job and here have read hundred of children ponder the origin of the COVID-19 virus. It is strange but I have seen and lived many lives this pandemic thanks to my jobs.

This was written as an assignment for Paula Flynn's fifth grade class at Franklin Elementary School in Santa Monica, CA. I hope that after covid i can live my normal school, spring, fall, winter, and summer life including: playing with my friends, doing sleepovers, going to the beach/playground, eating at a restaurant with no mask, summer camps.

This was written as an assignment for Paula Flynn's fifth grade class at Franklin Elementary School in Santa Monica, CA. I dream for Covid to end and for everyone to be given the vaccine. The world has taken a heavy hit from covid and I know that we can come back from it. Covid has affected many people from around the world. I hope that we are able to all stay safe during this pandemic.

This short piece shares the struggles and experiences of choosing between working as an essential worker and worrying about my family's health during the peak of the pandemic.

I was driving back from the library and saw this protest with no masks outside of a hotel that ICE is holding migrant families. They were waving American flags and had signs that said things like "America First", "Biden = Cartel", etc.

Graduations during 2020 were conducted remotely. This meant that the students missed out on an important and memorable ceremony to mark this milestone in their lives. All ages were affected. The students were mostly home, and some had videos either as a live feed or prerecorded. Families tried their best to make the occassion memorable for their kids. Some schoolz had car parades for their graduates to "march" in front of their school or neighbors.

COVID-19 quickly became a political rather than a health issue. Conservatives tended to deny COVID's existence as well as the value of vaccines, quarantine and wearing masks.