The Corona Chronicles

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What We’ve Found: The Stigma Around COVID-19

The Coronavirus has made people frightened and concerned about their health and their loved ones’. We’ve tried to reach out to people who were infected by corona or lost a family member as a result of it, but we couldn’t due to the sensitivity and the arising stigma around the disease. 

Rumors and misinformation about the disease have been rising rapidly in the last couple of weeks, in addition to fake statistics that made people more worried than they already are.

The stigma has been associated with anyone infected by coronavirus and according to Mayo Clinic, “people of Asian descent have been treated with suspicion and blamed for COVID-19, even though they're no more likely to spread the virus than is the general population.”

In Egypt, it is currently normal for a family to hide the fact that their son or daughter tested positive for the virus. Them being contagious is negatively perceived in the Egyptian society, accordingly they are blamed and shamed in a hurtful way. This, more often than not, creates hardships that hinders responding to the pandemic. 

Stigmatized groups might be excluded from social situations even after recovery, they may even lose their jobs and could be targets to emotional abuse.

In order to know more about the stigma around coronavirus, we asked people on social media: “Do you think there is a stigma around being infected with coronavirus? And if yes, why do you think this stigma exists.”

The comments we got from social media users showed us the reason behind not being able to reach out to infected cases, or even cases that had recovered. 

“A nurse I interviewed told me that people sometimes treat her badly or disrespectfully because they think she is more likely to be a carrier,” Amina A. Zeineldine, writer at Egyptian Streets said. 

Islam Faissal agreed to what Zeineldine said, where he added that stigma exists irrationally against infected people, but even more irrationally against people working in the medical field. 

Another comment by Sherif Khaled, IMC student, said that families might hide if there is a “suspected case” in their homes. 

“I think it is almost always due to a fear of getting infected, but also there is a misconception that if you got it, it is because you were irresponsible.”

According to NBC News, stigma around a disease can be one of the most powerful barriers of treatment and care towards “the most vulnerable.”

Stigma towards patients can lead to self-stigma, which is basically arousing feelings of guilt and shame of having a disease that might be passed to the loved ones. 

In regards to that, World Health Organization (WHO) created an online awareness campaign to raise people’s awareness about this stigma and how to deal with it, under the hashtag #SolidarityNotStigma and #TogetherWeCan. 

One of the campaign's posts stated that stigma due to #coronavirus leads to reduction in people seeking medical care or getting tested as well as reduction in people adhering to interventions. This often leads to cases not getting reported which would make the outbreak worse.

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Students Adopt New Hobbies and Acquire New Skills to get them through Quarantine: Part 2

Shahd Shaker, Canada, has been developing her baking skills.

She’s also started drawing.

Nour Beblawy, Egypt, has started working out consistently.

Raha Zahra, Malaysia, has started making dreamcatchers in her free time.

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Students Adopt New Hobbies and Acquire New Skills to get them through Quarantine: Part 1

Ingie Goher from Cairo learns Piano.

Maryam Hussain from India has gotten back to reading.

Hana El Ziki from Cairo has started skateboarding.

Arwa Al Mahalawi from Dubai, the UAE, has started journaling and reading.

Alia El Kattan from Cairo has started cooking for herself while she’s still at her university at NYU Abu Dhabi. She’s also started learning a second language on Duolingo.

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What has coronavirus taught you?

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COVID Cancels Once-in-a-lifetime Internship Opportunity

One of the most frustrating repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic is witnessing plans that have been in the making for several months or maybe years, collapse in an instant.

For most of us, this year’s summer travel plans are most probably cancelled, and our greatest hope is to be able to spend time with our loved ones in a couple of months.

The summer break is also an ideal time for internships and accelerated courses, and the timing of this pandemic puts career and educational opportunities at risk.

Before the pandemic, Zeina Fahim was able to land her dream summer job. However, the ideal summer plan is cancelled and will most probably never come again.

Fahim is seeking a Bachelor’s degree in Equine Science with Therapy at Hartpury University. According to her, “to gain the Massage Therapy Certification, you need experience in a professional yard.” 

Fahim was able to get in contact with Jane Richard Phillips, a significant rider and figure in the field and reached an agreement with her to work on her yard throughout the summer. The agreement entailed Fahim attending and riding at multiple shows on Phillips’ yard, which would jumpstart multiple aspects of her riding career. 

“This was truly an opportunity that wouldn’t come again, not so conveniently,” explains Fahim, “these yards are very private, so it’s not easy to allow someone to work for them for a summer.”

Zeina Fahim was one of many young students who lost exciting opportunities due to the pandemic. Whether these opportunities were cancelled or postponed, it could set back graduation plans or future career advancements. 

We have to adapt to the new norm and understanding that even the things we believe we have control over, can easily be taken out of our control.

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Through an Expert’s Eye

Illustration by Mac Toot (@mactoot84)

Subjective opinions about COVID-19 have been circulating on social media for the past couple of months, but actual scientific evidence has been varied on what’s true and what’s not.

According to The World Health Organization (WHO), COVID-19 is an infectious disease “caused by a newly discovered coronavirus.”

Mahmoud Shaltout, AUC assistant professor of global public health and liberal arts, explained that coronaviruses are a type of viruses that are known as such because of their spike shaped projections that look like a crown. 

“These are viruses often found in mammals and birds and can sometimes jump to human beings, often causing some variation or respiratory illness,” he said. 

Coronavirus is not the first of its kind to attack the humankind, the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2003 was a coronavirus and so was the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak in 2012.

On March 11, COVID-19 outbreak was declared a pandemic by WHO. 

“The COVID-19 virus spreads primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose when an infected person coughs or sneezes,” the WHO declared.

Shaltout said that it basically causes fever, dry cough and mild symptoms in healthy populations, but those who are vulnerable to the infection the most are the elderly, the very young or those with underlying health issues such as diabetes or immunosuppression.

“[This is because] the disease can develop into a severe pneumonia and as we have seen, could kill,” he added.

Basic preventive safety measures have been advised by WHO and all governments, such as washing hands regularly for 20 seconds, maintaining social distancing which is at least 1 metre, avoid face touching, and to seek medical care if experienced fever, cough and/or difficulty while breathing. 

Shaltout said that he sees a divide between reactions, whereas some people are extremely vigilant about their health and are religiously self quarantining, while another significant majority is reckless and careless.

“The latter do not have any sense of social responsibility and I think [they] suffer from a case of total selfishness,” he added. 

The Egyptian culture in specific, is used to holding huge family gatherings during the holy month of Ramadan, but the lockdown enforced by the government from 9 pm to 6 am made Ramadan different this year. 

With that being said, Shaltout still thinks that a more severe lockdown needs to be enforced in order to slow down the disease. 

“The gatherings that still happen, or the illusion that this horrible context is an excuse for a holiday, is unacceptable,” Shaltout explained.

Shaltout added that he is criticizing the privileged classes who continue to carelessly flout quarantine, but as for the underprivileged classes, he encourages them to take the utmost precaution while going on about their routine and not to “leave things to fate”.

“I commend those who stayed at home and have observed the quarantine even though it is very emotionally taxing,” he said.

Social media users have been discussing how long will the disease last, some assume that it might end by June, others assume it might end by December. Shaltout commented on this and said that how long it lasts depends on three factors. 

He explained that it primarily depends on how seriously people will observe the quarantine and flatten the curve, and how quickly a cure would be found. 

“June is highly optimistic, but one thing is certain; the more we isolate, the sooner this will subside..My advice to the public would be to stay home, and if outdoors, wear a mask, wear gloves, avoid touching surfaces and avoid touching your face.. Avoid crowds and gatherings at all costs,” he said.

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Paranoia Ensues as American Traveller Tries to Get Home

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Egyptian Student stuck in Paris Midst COVID-19

Flights all over the world have been suspended over the COVID-19 outbreak, with  Egypt suspending since March 16 with an extended  two-week period.

Egyptian students abroad were left unable to go back to their families, quarantined in a country where they are more often than not, unfamiliar with.

AUC Alumna Yara Zidan is currently doing masters of economics at Sorbonne University in France and has been heavily affected.

At the beginning of her academic semester, the university sent an email announcing that a professor is infected by coronavirus, and a 10-day break was announced.   

“The number of infected cases started to increase, especially in France, because anyone who has a Shengen visa can roam Europe [even] by a bus, and buses are often not strictly monitored,” Zidan said. 

Zidan added that less restrictions on ground transportation in France helped in spreading coronavirus cases.

She explained that Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport did not take safety measures during that phase, such as measuring passengers' temperature or wearing face masks. 

“My friends who travelled to or from Egypt at that time, told me that they had their temperature measured at Cairo International Airport and all safety measures were applied more than they were in Charles de Gaulle,” she added. 

Zidan explained that many people had almost all the symptoms of the virus, especially in the public transportation which they are highly dependent on, however none of the precautionary measures were seriously taken at that point. 

“Before the outbreak of COVID-19, people in Paris did not take the situation seriously. They were surprised to see me wearing a face mask, but I had a gut feeling that things are getting worse.”

“People think that the awareness level in Egypt is lower than that in the European countries, but I was shocked and surprised to see that Egyptians are paying attention more and applying safety measures,” she added.

French President Macron urged the country on Monday March 16 to stay at home for 15 days to prevent the spread of coronavirus. On Tuesday March 17, he announced that the borders of the European Union (EU) would close for 30 days. 

“We are at a war,” he said. 

Zidan explained that at this point, France was one of the countries that applied all safety measures to a great extent, including a 24/7 lockdown. 

Before this was announced, she was always comfortable that in a blink of an eye, she would book a flight and go back to her family. 

“I was terrified when all the airports were shut down, but the Egyptian Embassy in France helped us [Egyptian students] from day one,” she said. 

The Facebook pages of the embassy and the official association of Egyptian students in France were constantly updating students and making sure they are okay. 

“Egyptian students were able to fly back to Egypt, two flights were set to fly Egyptians whose residency permit is over or students who need to go back home,” she explained. 

However, she chose to stay in France because she was not sure whether the masters exams will be held online or not. 

“I couldn’t jeopardize my masters,” she said.

Zidan said that her friends who chose to go back to Egypt were quarantined in the Egyptian quarantine hospital as soon as they landed, without any fees. 

“There is a flight tomorrow [Wednesday April 8] from Egypt to France, for those who urgently need to go back to France,” she added. 

Zidan said that although quarantine seems boring, she started exploring herself more. 

“What I learned is not to take anything for granted, I learned not to postpone meeting someone or talking to someone, and I learned to adapt. I believe that adapting is such a success,” she said. 

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Photo Essay: COVID Inspires New Lifestyles in Amsterdam

Studying abroad in the Netherlands, Rana Shalaan, an Egyptian student, decided she would rather ride out the outbreak in Amsterdam rather than coming home. She does so with her house of 13 people who all live in agreement to do their best to fight the disease while having some fun. She shared some photos that her housemate (@omnidata) has been taking to document the experience.

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South Africa’s 67th Case of Coronavirus

Youtube Creator Dan Mace talks about his experience getting Coronavirus and not realizing it until he had recovered.

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Pandemic Cancels Major Vegas Journalism Award Ceremony

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madboly announced that all the aviation movement will be suspended in all airports starting March 19 until March 31, as a preventive measure to slow down the spread of COVID-19.

Following this decision, a lot have been affected. Either those who were stuck abroad and unable to fly back to their home country, or those who had plans that were cancelled.

Aviation movement was not only suspended in Egypt, it was suspended all over the world. Saudi Arabia suspended all international flights for two weeks starting Sunday, March 15. China, United States of America, etc. suspended all international flights as well.

Hussein El Moataz, Journalism and Mass Communication Alumni, expressed his disappointment and anger.

“I was travelling to Las Vegas Mid-April to receive the BEA excellence award and everything got cancelled,” he said.

On December 17, El Moataz published  a short documentary for his Masters in Television and Digital Journalism at Kamal Adham Center for Television and Digital Journalism, along with his colleagues Bellah Mohamed and Tohamy Battah.

People of Gold featured Nubians who survived after being displaced to new places, and won the award of excellence in the Broadcast Education Association (BEA) Festival of Media Arts.

“My colleagues and I planned everything, we had difficulties getting the visa but it worked out and we got it on March 3. We booked our flight to Los Angeles on April 11 and everything was set,” El Moataz said.

The 65th annual convention was meant to be held on April 18 in Las Vegas.

“Some countries started to restrict aviation movements and AUC sent an email to the community asking everyone to avoid travelling abroad as long as it’s not necessary.”

The email El Moataz referred to was sent by Managements and Operations VP office on March 16.

“AUC’s travel office is ready to assist in issuing any emergency tickets for all AUC community members that need to travel within the coming 48 hours,” the email said.

El Moataz explained that they were able to overcome all the challenges, including travel logistics. That was all before COVID-19 was declared a pandemic by The World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11.

He explained that not a single person expected that the situation would get worse in the USA.

“After COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, we received a cancellation email,” He said.

The conference, as Hussein explained, might be held virtually but unfortunately, students won’t receive their awards.

Hussein’s disappointment is not only because he couldn't receive his award. He had planned to travel to Washington to visit his family.

“I had a fantastic 20 days plan in the U.S, but what I learned from this is that one can plan ahead everything meticulously, and everything would be cancelled in a blink of an eye,” he said.

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Tallahassee: Egyptian Student Studies in Florida for a semester, Ends up in Self-Quarantine

“It wasn't so severe where I was staying before they closed down the airports so I didn't consider going back to Cairo.”

When Nouran Ibrahim, American University in Cairo Computer Science Junior flew to Jacksonville, Florida in January to start an unforgettable semester abroad, she did not know she would be scrambling to find disinfectant in Jacksonville a couple of months later.

As of March 27th, Ibrahim still wasn’t able to access masks because of how low in stock they were in Florida. This is a photograph of her in the bus station going from Jacksonville to Tallahassee. 

On the 25th of March, ‘the city of Miami issued a shelter in place order late Tuesday that went into effect just before midnight.’ This has come into effect after herds of college ‘spring breakers’ have been rushing to Miami beaches with disregard to the outbreak of the virus. As of March 28th, the death told in the Miami region is at 14, with a total of 4,038 cases of Coronavirus in the state of Florida.

Ibrahim said that her and her host have actually been buying their necessities online rather than supermarkets, though. "I usually have to go down and meet the person delivering it wearing masks and gloves," she said.

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Case Update Map as of March 17

According to METRO UK