Society Hill Walkway Community Health Action for Universal Masking!

Dear Neighbors,

I hope you are all healthy and well, hanging in there during these difficult times. Please be aware that COVID-19 numbers are again rising locally and globally with the easing of restrictions and return to school. Please take care of yourselves and others in our neighborhood.

I know we are all sick of being sedentary and indoors. In fact, now that the weather's cooled a little, I for one, am happy to get out and see you, my neighbors! Especially the ones that seem to care about me by wearing a mask--I care about you too--you guys are awesome!

I have finally recently regained access to our walkway and have been noticing a lot of unmasked or half-masked people on it. Before I could take action with Society Hill management, this morning, I found a sign saying "masks required" on the gate that I usually use to enter. Be it management or some concerned resident with initiative, I applaud and thank whoever did this!

I don't know if these signs were on all of the gates within the community, but the gate to the main street was open, so anyone can enter, making this a space thoroughly open to the public. Whether "private" or "public," it is shared common space that we are all entitled to enjoy safely.

Unfortunately, there were still many people on the walkway without masks or without them covering their noses. Relieved to find the sign there, I started approaching people--got within 6 feet, shook their hands, offered to take my mask off, so they could hear me better--and kindly asking people to wear a mask, citing the sign as "policy". Of course, people ignored me, made excuses, and expressed uninformed opinions and misinterpretation of "state policy."

But, you see, with a Ph.D. in Sociocultural Epidemiology (now is the time to brandish it, to see if it will do some good), I am a professor of public health policy, currently at Rutgers University, just trying to get a little physical activity in frankly, the only space available for me to do so. We know individual one-by-one "health education" "change people's minds by talking at them" is not effective, nor is confrontation and shaming, which admittedly, I engaged in this morning before honing my pitch. Policy, however, IS extremely effective and impactful in shaping epidemics. So, in trying to be more systematic, I am:

1. Raising awareness and sensitivity and pleading with my neighbors and community members to inform themselves of and follow the rules at every level (local/neighborhood/organizational/community, county, state). The more local the rule, the more tailored it is to the specific epidemiological situation of the place and moment. The high the level of policy-setting, the more sluggish it is to adapt and change to fluctuations. Rules are a minimum low bar. As responsible, educated health professionals, with a strong sense of social responsibility, our family is especially careful to protect ourselves when going into any public spaces, thereby protecting each other from COVID-19. My husband is a front line health care worker you are all calling "heroes", but if he gives me COVID and I'm out on the walkway, well, I'm wearing a mask, but you best be wearing one (and trying to keep 6 feet distance, difficult when running past each other on a...3 ft.?-wide path. If you get me sick and I bring it home to him, you are responsible for taking a health care worker that YOU might and definitely many others, some of them, your loved ones, will need.

2. Requesting that Society Hill publicly post and disseminate evidence- and contextually/structurally-sensitive masking policies at every walkway entrance within the community, while limiting the number of people able to enter by, at a minimum, requiring key entry and ensuring that all gates are locked at all times. I know the main street entrance can be closed with a padlock. If people can't take responsibility for closing gates behind them, install spring-closed gates. One guy this morning says "he can't run in a mask" (while I'm out there running in a mask and am a hijabi--fully covered--and he's in shorts--I know for a fact, you can). If you can't work out in a mask, stay home, stay in climate control, do some jumping jacks, buy a treadmill or exercise bike, whatever.

Those of us in Society Hill II are unfortunately very familiar with the chaos that is our waste disposal and the camera surveillance and threatening, punitive signs that go along with it. Many have also become desensitized and completely conditioned to ignore the signs and rules (who knows if they've been "caught on camera" and fined and/or whether the reason we have so many problems with our waste disposal). I hope it wouldn't come to this, but if it can be done for the trash, it can be done for the walkways (and I would argue, for general safety reasons, might make more sense to do there) and this type of "enforcement" will be at all homeowners' expense! How about just being responsible with some intrinsic motivation and following the rules because they are for the common good? Otherwise, returning to the property management's responsibility, my question is, beyond putting up signs, what are you doing to enforce health safety rules and regulations on the walkway, during COVID-19 or any time?

The other excuse this runner gave was that he usually comes earlier in the morning "when no one's on the walkway." I'm up very early and would like to go running on the walkway earlier, but as a woman (and despite black belt martial arts training), do not feel safe going out there in the dark "when no one's there." I feel even less safe knowing that someone else, another misogynist man who doesn't recognize his gendered privilege of being able to do that, is out there maskless (and "alone", feeling entitled to the space) at that time.

In fact, after all of the trees have been cut down/shade removed, as a woman who does cover after having traumatic experiences of gender-based violence with men, I have more of a need to be jogging earlier, before sunrise, when it's cooler. So the equitable (and gentlemanly) thing to do would be to designate a masked ladies walkway hour at that time. "Curves" and "ladies gyms" are all closed right now too. But that guy's wife is probably too busy at that hour taking care of others, or any other hour, to do something as "selfish" as going out walking or jogging...

Another creative "gender-neutral" solution (since we're all living under some sort of illusion that our society is indeed post-gender) would be to require "reservations" for the walkway to limit the number of people on it at a given time. That would also create some accountability, and all of us who are signed up are accountable to and responsible for each others' health and safety.

3. I am prepared to take this beyond Society Hill/Droyers Point if not resolved, and, with this post and other social media posts, am making others beyond the neighborhood aware of the situation.

4. If you use this walkway and appreciate masking on it, please like this post AND sign this petition. If you have specific ideas on how to make universal masking on the walkway a reality in terms of promotion, policy, and enforcement, please add your comments with the signature.