Left Behind: Yachts, Dinghies, and Perceptions of Social Inequality in COVID-19
Left Behind: Yachts, Dinghies, and Perceptions of Social Inequality in COVID-19
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DOI：
10.1080/00380253.2022.2133755
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发表时间：
2022-11-05
影响因子：
1.2
通讯作者：
Newell，Abigail
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Ravenelle，Alexandrea J.;Conley，Jacob;Newell，Abigail
关于COVID风险划分第一线的基本工作人员如何接受美国团结的描述(即“我们都在一起”)，以及大流行可能如何导致低收入工人中出现阶级不平等的看法，人们知之甚少。在这篇文章中，我们利用了192次对纽约市不稳定和零工工人的深度采访。我们发现，在第一波疫情最严重的时候，岌岌可危的工人经常对基于阶级的不平等和对精英的敌意表示失望。许多受访者对疫情让美国人团结在一起的信息表示严重怀疑。相反，工人们在纽约发现了两个截然不同的、以阶级为基础的现实：美国精英能够在“豪宅”或“游艇”上保持社交距离，而岌岌可危的工人则在“小艇”里艰难地度过这场风暴。同样，工人们感觉被富有的业主和经理“遗弃”，他们逃离城市，搬到海滩社区和周围郊区与社会距离遥远的房子里。我们的发现表明，在大流行期间，低工资、高风险的工人清楚地表达了对不平等的复杂概念，并向精英阶层传达了不满。这项研究有助于更广泛地研究感知到的不平等、有害工作的兴起以及新冠肺炎的社会后果。
Little is known about how portrayals of American unity (i.e. “we’re all in this together”) have been received by essential workers on the front lines of the COVID risk divide, and how the pandemic may have contributed to perceptions of class inequality among lower-income workers. In this paper, we draw upon 192 in-depth interviews with precarious and gig-based workers in New York City. We find that during the height of the first wave of the pandemic, precarious workers often expressed frustration over class-based inequalities and antagonism toward elites. Many respondents expressed significant skepticism toward messages that the pandemic has brought Americans together. Instead, workers identified two distinct, class-based realities in New York: elite Americans are able to socially-distance in “mansions,” or on “yachts,” while precarious workers struggled to weather the storm in “dinghies.” Likewise, workers felt “abandoned” by wealthy owners and managers, who fled the city to socially-distanced homes in beach communities and surrounding suburbs. Our findings suggest that low-wage, high-risk workers articulate complex conceptualizations of inequality and convey grievances toward elites during the pandemic. This study contributes to broader literature on perceived inequality, the rise of noxious work, and the social consequences of COVID-19.