Hereâs a fun tale from your local Target employee:
I was pushing truck for OTC today which is the pharmacy area. I was pushing cases of hand sanitizer because we got the âgood stuffâ in today (purell) and it goes quick even with the the product limit put in place. People were literally taking it from my hand before I could put it on the shelf, but thatâs not the point.
As I was putting the goods on the shelf, this woman comes up to the stand and sheâs very excited. âYes! You guys have it! How many can I take, is there a limit?â I say yes, 3 per person per transaction per day. She nods, accepting, and grabs her three. âSorry, that was weird. Iâm a teacher, Iâm trying to stock up. I promise Iâm not a hoarder.â I smile and nod and say itâs fine. She starts to walk away but stops and turns back.
âDo you have any Clorox wipes in stock by any chance?â
Heart sinking, I shake my head and say no, sorry, and we donât know for sure when weâll get more. (We get them maybe once every two weeks, but the product limit for those is one per person per transaction per day and they usually sell out within hours of going on the shelf.)
Her face dropped and she kinda looked down at her hand sanitizer and said âthatâs okay, with the product limit I wouldnât be able to get enough before school starts anyway. Itâs only 4 weeks away.â She laughed a little but I could hear the frustration in her voice and see the tension in her face. She sounded defeated. The most I could offer her was one of the small bottles of pure bleach. I honestly wanted to cry. For a second there I thought she would. I had no clue what to say as she turned and walked away.
This is what teachers are dealing with. Even in years when thereâs not a pandemic they have to rely on donations from parents or their own money to be able to buy hand sanitizer, wipes, tissues, etc. for their classrooms. Now theyâre being forced to return to school with no extra funding, no extra supplies, no support from the government; theyâre STILL expected to provide for and protect these kids *on their own.* All while, now, risking their own lives and their own health because the government doesnât want to admit that they fucked up handling this pandemic.
Every time I hear someone say âkids donât die from it, itâll be fine,â I realize that person does not give a flying fuck about teachers. Sure, *maybe* the kids will be fine. But the teachers are not children. They are adults with underlying conditions, adults living with elderly family, adults who are over 50 and are at more risk. Adults with at risk family at home. Adults who are at risk themselves. But they are STILL trying their hardest to protect your children in the classroom.
Itâs honestly fucked up that we live in a country where police departments get millions or even billions of dollars in state funding, yet teachers have to buy their own cleaning supplies and doctors have to reuse PPE in hospitals. Police get tens of thousands of dollars worth of riot armor to wear and terrorize peaceful protesters, while the Navajo Nation get sent body bags instead of medical supplies.
Honestly I donât know where Iâm going with this, but Iâm tired yâall. Iâm tired and frustrated because leadership in this country doesnât care enough to prioritize human life. Idk, it was a small moment in the grand scheme of things but it really was a slap in the face reminder of how this country treats itâs own people. I feel like weâve all been getting those lately.
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