csmonitor--2020-04-30--Daily for April 30, 2020

Daily for April 30, 2020

For the first North Americans , memories of pandemics are long .
Lela Oman was an infant in Nome , Alaska , during the 1918 flu epidemic .
Nome , on the far northwestern tip of the continent , had just gotten a telephone line , so residents were able to get some advance warning .
Everyone knew what to do after that , Ms. Oman recalled in a 1996 interview for a University of Alaska , Fairbanks , oral history project .
Dog teams “ went to Deering and to Shishmaref telling everybody up there not to come down @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Shishmaref , there were guards , sentries , with guns .
If anybody started coming up this way , shoot to kill.
” Editor ’ s note : As a public service , all our coronavirus coverage is free .
No paywall .
Those responses from a century ago are playing out again now as Native communities across North America go on the offensive against COVID-19 .
Infectious diseases have played a tragic role in the history of indigenous people on the continent , from smallpox to the measles wiping out large swaths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Now , with the arrival of the new coronavirus , Native communities face severe challenges .
Those on reservations are disproportionately old , have high rates of chronic disease , are often living in remote locations , and rely on dramatically underresourced health systems .
What ’ s more , for some Native tribes , older people are the last repositories of vanishing languages and cultures .
“ Every [ issue ] that is true elsewhere in the United States is being magnified ” in Indian Country , says Allison Barlow , director @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Indian Health .
As recently as the 1918 flu epidemic , the death rate for Native communities in the U.S. was four times higher than the nation as a whole .
That shared past has pushed some Native communities to act faster than their neighboring state and national governments , reprising the same shutdowns and security patrols from a century ago .
But it has also added something more – a remarkable perseverance .
“ This has in many ways been a perfect storm ” for Native communities , says Dr. Barlow .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s incredible resilience and flexibility.
” The scope of the challenge A lack of testing is a problem for the entire continent , but it ’ s an additional problem for Native communities and health systems that were already stressed .
That has made it hard to get an accurate gauge of the coronavirus ’ s impact .
There are 2,711 confirmed cases in the U.S. Indian health system , and 89 deaths , as of Tuesday , according to an Indian Country Today database .
And as of Wednesday , Indigenous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ positive tests on First Nations reserves .
Those numbers may not capture the large indigenous population living off reservations .
Yet reservations are the greatest cause for concern .
While the majority of indigenous people live outside reservations , reservation demographics skew toward the most vulnerable populations , including older people and those with chronic illnesses .
Most positive cases in Indian Country are concentrated in a few reservations .
Moreover , reservations struggle with a host of challenges .
Health facilities are understaffed and underresourced .
Homes are crowded , with several @ @ @ @ @ @ @ poor , and in some cases nonexistent .
One in three people in the Navajo Nation don ’ t have running water , for example , according to the Navajo Water Project .
In Canada , some reserves not only lack water but also have a “ do not use ” advisory in effect , meaning they can ’ t even use that water for hand-washing .
Many reservations are also remote , and that isolation can cut both ways .
Ninety-six First Nations in Canada can be reached only by plane , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that carry food , freight , and mail have been reduced dramatically .
The Canadian government has sent hand sanitizer , masks , gloves , and isolation shields to indigenous communities and is deploying the Canadian Rangers to Inuit communities in northern Quebec .
The U.S. Congress , meanwhile , has passed four national relief packages that include more than $ 8 billion for Indian Country .
But that comes after decades of underfunding from national governments that , through treaty agreements , have a trust responsibility to provide health care to tribes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ South Dakota and Nebraska .
There is one inpatient health care facility on the reservation , which has a population of almost 20,000 and is more than twice the size of Rhode Island .
The clinic has 45 beds and 16 staff members , according to the Indian Health Service .
More supplies are being ordered , and the tribe has a contingency plan for two large-scale quarantine sites .
The echoes of the past are hard to ignore .
“ This situation is retraumatizing to many tribal communities , ” says Dr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they have rebounded from generations of genocide and ethnocide and really started to develop autonomous structures for governing and so forth , ” she adds , they ’ re “ being revisited by an old enemy .
Here is this deadly virus , and they don ’ t have what they need to contain it.
” So tribes are taking matters into their own hands as best they can .
Since the evening of April 3 , for instance , the Oglala Sioux have been enforcing a curfew on the Pine Ridge Reservation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Neither South Dakota nor Nebraska has issued statewide lockdown orders . )
The tribe has been educating members on hand-washing , including drawing up posters in various languages .
“ Are we ready as a people ?
” asked Julian Bear Runner , president of the tribe , in an April 1 Facebook Live video .
“ We ’ re getting ready .
I think we ’ re as ready as we can be right now.
” The Little Pine Nation is taking similar steps .
A Cree First Nation in northwest Saskatchewan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ members .
The reserve sits in a valley with two main roads in and out .
The Nation runs its own security force , and members say they began patrolling – allowing only residents and essential travel in and out – as soon as the province closed major services on March 25 .
Little Pine has also closed schools and organized the distribution of food and supplies .
Doug Cuthand , a local columnist and filmmaker , says he ’ s never seen anything like it .
“ It seems to be a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this thing , ” he says .
“ Because there is a fear that if it does get a foothold ... it could be very dangerous.
” One of the deepest concerns is for tribal elders .
Elders are revered in indigenous communities as the carriers of knowledge , tradition , and language .
And tribes around the continent have been taking extra care of them .
Since mid-March , the Cherokee Nation has delivered food to elders across the reservation – including perishable items from 10 casinos and hotels the tribe shut @ @ @ @ @ @ @ visiting elders in person to instruct them , in Cherokee , how to follow health and safety guidelines .
The Cherokee Nation is the largest tribe in America , but only 2,000 of its 380,000 members are fluent Cherokee speakers , according to Chuck Hoskin Jr. , principal chief of the Nation .
The “ lion ’ s share ” of them are age 65 or older , he says .
“ They ’ re the keepers of our stories and our history.
” “ They ’ re holders of [ our ] @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sambo Dorough , chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council .
“ The lessons that they share , that they ’ re eager to ensure that others heed – especially when it comes to hunting , fishing , harvesting , and our overall food security ” – are crucial .
It was only in 1925 , after all , that a serum was rushed by a dog team to Nome to prevent a diphtheria outbreak – a crisis that inspired the Iditarod race .
“ For many of our leaders , the epidemics of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Dr. Dorough adds .
In that way , this crisis feels familiar .
John Borrows , a member of the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation in southern Ontario , wrote last month about how infectious diseases left a mark on his mother ’ s childhood .
“ That kind of telescopes then to what happened in the previous generation with the Spanish flu and what her father experienced , and then that telescopes back to the previous generation with smallpox and what her great-grandfather experienced , ” says Mr. Borrows , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ University of Victoria Law School in British Columbia .
“ So it cascades and it gets wrapped together for folks – that smallpox is Spanish flu is tuberculosis is COVID-19.
” Today , his mother ’ s reservation is organizing supplies and food distribution for the neediest people .
She gets soup delivered to her front door every evening .
“ Sometimes people view reserves as just a lost cause of problems , ” he says .
“ But they ’ re also homelands , and people love them.
” Little Pine ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s quick response comes from the knowledge of what past pandemics have done to First Nations communities .
What inspires hope is “ the fact that [ First Nations ] are so disciplined.
” If anything , Native communities can take pride in how they ’ ve responded to the COVID-19 pandemic so far , says Jessica Elm , a postdoctoral fellow at the Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health .
“ In some ways I feel we ’ re doing better than a lot of people in this current situation , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Oneida Nation in northern Wisconsin .
“ Tribal communities are resilient to this .
... We ’ ve been through it before .
We know our ancestors have got through it , so we know we can get through it.
” Correction : This article has been corrected to accurately state the number of Navajo without running water .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , all our coronavirus coverage is free .
No paywall .
Also , the story has been updated to include the correct number @ @ @ @ @

For Native Americans, coronavirus looks heartbreakingly familiar Collapse
For the first North Americans, memories of pandemics are long.
Lela Oman was an infant in Nome, Alaska, during the 1918 flu epidemic. Nome, on the far northwestern tip of the continent, had just gotten a telephone line, so residents were able to get some advance warning.
Everyone knew what to do after that, Ms. Oman recalled in a 1996 interview for a University of Alaska, Fairbanks, oral history project. Dog teams “went to Deering and to Shishmaref telling everybody up there not to come down,” she said. “At Shishmaref, there were guards, sentries, with guns. If anybody started coming up this way, shoot to kill.”
Editor’s note: As a public service, all our coronavirus coverage is free. No paywall.
Those responses from a century ago are playing out again now as Native communities across North America go on the offensive against COVID-19. Infectious diseases have played a tragic role in the history of indigenous people on the continent, from smallpox to the measles wiping out large swaths of the population through the centuries.
Now, with the arrival of the new coronavirus, Native communities face severe challenges. Those on reservations are disproportionately old, have high rates of chronic disease, are often living in remote locations, and rely on dramatically underresourced health systems. What’s more, for some Native tribes, older people are the last repositories of vanishing languages and cultures.
“Every [issue] that is true elsewhere in the United States is being magnified” in Indian Country, says Allison Barlow, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health.
As recently as the 1918 flu epidemic, the death rate for Native communities in the U.S. was four times higher than the nation as a whole. That shared past has pushed some Native communities to act faster than their neighboring state and national governments, reprising the same shutdowns and security patrols from a century ago. But it has also added something more – a remarkable perseverance.
“This has in many ways been a perfect storm” for Native communities, says Dr. Barlow. But in Native populations, “there’s incredible resilience and flexibility.”
The scope of the challenge
A lack of testing is a problem for the entire continent, but it’s an additional problem for Native communities and health systems that were already stressed. That has made it hard to get an accurate gauge of the coronavirus’s impact.
There are 2,711 confirmed cases in the U.S. Indian health system, and 89 deaths, as of Tuesday, according to an Indian Country Today database. And as of Wednesday, Indigenous Services Canada was aware of 129 confirmed positive tests on First Nations reserves. Those numbers may not capture the large indigenous population living off reservations.
David Jackson/Reuters View caption Hide caption Residents, including Chief Wilfred King (far right), stand at a checkpoint restricting access to their community to slow the spread of the coronavirus in their remote First Nations community of Gull Bay, Ontario, April 27, 2020.
Yet reservations are the greatest cause for concern. While the majority of indigenous people live outside reservations, reservation demographics skew toward the most vulnerable populations, including older people and those with chronic illnesses. Most positive cases in Indian Country are concentrated in a few reservations.
Moreover, reservations struggle with a host of challenges. Health facilities are understaffed and underresourced. Homes are crowded, with several generations under one roof. Infrastructure is poor, and in some cases nonexistent. One in three people in the Navajo Nation don’t have running water, for example, according to the Navajo Water Project. In Canada, some reserves not only lack water but also have a “do not use” advisory in effect, meaning they can’t even use that water for hand-washing.
Many reservations are also remote, and that isolation can cut both ways. Ninety-six First Nations in Canada can be reached only by plane, while in Alaska, essential air services that carry food, freight, and mail have been reduced dramatically.
The Canadian government has sent hand sanitizer, masks, gloves, and isolation shields to indigenous communities and is deploying the Canadian Rangers to Inuit communities in northern Quebec. The U.S. Congress, meanwhile, has passed four national relief packages that include more than $8 billion for Indian Country.
But that comes after decades of underfunding from national governments that, through treaty agreements, have a trust responsibility to provide health care to tribes.
Take the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota and Nebraska. There is one inpatient health care facility on the reservation, which has a population of almost 20,000 and is more than twice the size of Rhode Island. The clinic has 45 beds and 16 staff members, according to the Indian Health Service.
More supplies are being ordered, and the tribe has a contingency plan for two large-scale quarantine sites. The echoes of the past are hard to ignore.
“This situation is retraumatizing to many tribal communities,” says Dr. Barlow at Johns Hopkins.
“After they have rebounded from generations of genocide and ethnocide and really started to develop autonomous structures for governing and so forth,” she adds, they’re “being revisited by an old enemy. Here is this deadly virus, and they don’t have what they need to contain it.”
Defending the reservation
So tribes are taking matters into their own hands as best they can.
Since the evening of April 3, for instance, the Oglala Sioux have been enforcing a curfew on the Pine Ridge Reservation, restricting who can enter. (Neither South Dakota nor Nebraska has issued statewide lockdown orders.) The tribe has been educating members on hand-washing, including drawing up posters in various languages.
“Are we ready as a people?” asked Julian Bear Runner, president of the tribe, in an April 1 Facebook Live video. “We’re getting ready. I think we’re as ready as we can be right now.”
Courtesy of Cherokee Nation Communications Department View caption Hide caption Cherokee Nation Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Deputy Chief Bryan Warner hold up masks during the coronavirus pandemic in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. The tribe donated 1,200 masks to 17 fire departments.
The Little Pine Nation is taking similar steps. A Cree First Nation in northwest Saskatchewan, the Little Pine Nation has 2,000 members. The reserve sits in a valley with two main roads in and out. The Nation runs its own security force, and members say they began patrolling – allowing only residents and essential travel in and out – as soon as the province closed major services on March 25.
Little Pine has also closed schools and organized the distribution of food and supplies. Doug Cuthand, a local columnist and filmmaker, says he’s never seen anything like it.
“It seems to be a total community effort to try and stop this thing,” he says. “Because there is a fear that if it does get a foothold ... it could be very dangerous.”
Care for elders
One of the deepest concerns is for tribal elders. Elders are revered in indigenous communities as the carriers of knowledge, tradition, and language. And tribes around the continent have been taking extra care of them.
Since mid-March, the Cherokee Nation has delivered food to elders across the reservation – including perishable items from 10 casinos and hotels the tribe shut down. Tribal members have also been visiting elders in person to instruct them, in Cherokee, how to follow health and safety guidelines.
The Cherokee Nation is the largest tribe in America, but only 2,000 of its 380,000 members are fluent Cherokee speakers, according to Chuck Hoskin Jr., principal chief of the Nation.
The “lion’s share” of them are age 65 or older, he says. “They’re the keepers of our stories and our history.”
“They’re holders of [our] ingenuity and knowledge,” adds Dalee Sambo Dorough, chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council. “The lessons that they share, that they’re eager to ensure that others heed – especially when it comes to hunting, fishing, harvesting, and our overall food security” – are crucial.
It was only in 1925, after all, that a serum was rushed by a dog team to Nome to prevent a diphtheria outbreak – a crisis that inspired the Iditarod race.
“For many of our leaders, the epidemics of the past [are] recent history,” Dr. Dorough adds.
In that way, this crisis feels familiar. John Borrows, a member of the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation in southern Ontario, wrote last month about how infectious diseases left a mark on his mother’s childhood.
“That kind of telescopes then to what happened in the previous generation with the Spanish flu and what her father experienced, and then that telescopes back to the previous generation with smallpox and what her great-grandfather experienced,” says Mr. Borrows, an expert in indigenous law at the University of Victoria Law School in British Columbia. “So it cascades and it gets wrapped together for folks – that smallpox is Spanish flu is tuberculosis is COVID-19.”
Today, his mother’s reservation is organizing supplies and food distribution for the neediest people. She gets soup delivered to her front door every evening.
“Sometimes people view reserves as just a lost cause of problems,” he says. “But they’re also homelands, and people love them.”
Little Pine’s Mr. Cuthand says his community’s quick response comes from the knowledge of what past pandemics have done to First Nations communities. What inspires hope is “the fact that [First Nations] are so disciplined.”
If anything, Native communities can take pride in how they’ve responded to the COVID-19 pandemic so far, says Jessica Elm, a postdoctoral fellow at the Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health.
“In some ways I feel we’re doing better than a lot of people in this current situation,” says Dr. Elm, a member of the Oneida Nation in northern Wisconsin. “Tribal communities are resilient to this. ... We’ve been through it before. We know our ancestors have got through it, so we know we can get through it.”
Correction: This article has been corrected to accurately state the number of Navajo without running water.
Editor’s note: As a public service, all our coronavirus coverage is free. No paywall. Also, the story has been updated to include the correct number of Cherokee Nation members.


Daily for May 14, 2020

Ever since the Danish government decreed its youngest children could go back to school , the principal of Marie Mørks School has been up late , planning logistics and sorting how to communicate with the families he serves .
The youthful father runs a private school 30 miles north of the Danish capital of Copenhagen , and , with a toddler at home and a 12-year-old at the local public school , he understands the anxiety around bundling kids off to school during a pandemic .
“ Of course , you are a bit nervous , ” Mr. Christensen says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ school and their friends , and for them a month is an eternity .
Their smiles take away most of my fears and reservations.
” Two months after most countries in Europe began closing down in response to the coronavirus , many are cautiously reopening schools alongside their economies , welcoming tens of millions of students back into the classroom in staggered shifts .
Denmark was the first to reopen schools in mid-April , followed by France , Germany , Austria , and others .
Parents expressed concerns about their children ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ serve both students in classrooms and those at home who are waiting for a return date .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , all our coronavirus coverage is free .
No paywall .
In Denmark , logistics around hygiene have been painstaking .
Door handles , washbasins , and school tables are wiped down three to five times daily .
Classes have been halved , so students can maintain a 2-meter ( 6-foot ) distance .
Outdoor spaces are subdivided into five units , with each class appointed one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a challenge , explains Mr. Christensen – “ until a math teacher came up with a brilliant idea !
” The Legos are now separated into four boxes , he says , with each set in use only every fourth day , since the virus is believed to die out after 48 hours on solid surfaces .
Indeed , European governments have been unrelenting with such requirements , and officials are watching health metrics closely .
But most countries have otherwise allowed schools to make their own decisions about how lessons should be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a premium on creativity and patience in an environment that has vastly changed since before the shutdown : • In Germany , one Berlin school has divided each class into four groups to maintain a required 1.5 meters of space between students .
This means teachers are delivering the same lesson four separate times .
• In Denmark , a tiny country with 1 million primary and secondary students , classes are advised to be held outdoors where possible .
Outside Copenhagen , one school is tapping the gym as a classroom , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be sanitized between shifts .
Public trust in the Danish prime minister surged from 39 % to nearly 80 % at the end of April .
• In France , a reopening of schools is purely voluntary , as the national government has shifted decision-making power to mayors and principals .
Even so , the Education Ministry expects nearly 85 % of its schools to reopen in some fashion by May 15 .
Countries are weighing a combination of factors that include science , besides elements such as cultural priorities , as they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ No one knows exactly what ’ s going to happen , ” says François Dubet , a sociologist and professor emeritus of the University of Bordeaux .
“ If the number of sick people goes down , we ’ ll return to normal life , but if in 10 days that number goes up , it ’ s going to get very complicated.
” Germany : Back to school before summer , but no mandates In Berlin , where schools began reopening in late April , many principals at the city ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ students ’ reentry to school .
That means some children are coming back for as little as two shifts a week for 150 minutes each time , so that a required 1.5 meters of distance can be maintained between students .
Teachers report excitement to be back on campus , but also a sense of exhaustion , as they ’ re taking on new duties including acting as “ supervisor ” to how students move around the building .
“ As in , ‘ Hey !
You can ’ t stand that close @ @ @ @ @ @ @ walk towards each other !
Use that exit , not this one , ’ ” says Lydia Puschnerus , who teaches at a public gymnasium ( equivalent to an American secondary school ) in the Schöneberg district of Berlin .
“ It ’ s worked so far , but over the long term it ’ s stressful and unnatural.
” Björn Nölte , who teaches at a public school just outside Berlin , says daily routines have completely changed .
“ There ’ s always a colleague sitting in front of the bathrooms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the corridors , to make sure students don ’ t accidentally get close.
” Disinfectant has been dropped off at schools , and Berlin ’ s government has granted teachers a one-time payment of €16 ( $ 17 ) to buy masks .
Yet aside from “ must follow ” hygiene rules , Berlin has been reluctant to issue mandates , letting schools decide how to alter their curriculum , whether to skip exams , and how to stagger classes .
That comes out of the need to serve an incredibly diverse @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and digital access , says Ryan Plocher , a Berlin social studies teacher and teacher ’ s union representative .
“ Principals really have to weigh [ how to reopen ] , because schools in richer districts can do the whole thing by distance , ” says Mr. Plocher .
“ But in poorer areas , some students haven ’ t been in contact with schools at all during the shutdown .
Their parents can ’ t or won ’ t help , as in , ‘ I ’ m not going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ ” Like the principal in Denmark , administrators at Mr. Plocher ’ s school have halved class sizes to maintain social distance .
They ’ ve also eliminated or decided to monitor heavily the times that children might be in contact without masks .
“ That ’ s toileting , eating , drinking , ” says Mr. Plocher , meaning that kids come onto school grounds only for a few hours at a time , with no lunch .
Bathroom breaks are taken one student at a time .
Mr. Nölte ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ further , into four units .
With the help of co-teachers and supervisors , Mr. Nölte is teaching all four groups of a single German class simultaneously , shuttling between four rooms , which each houses five or six children .
Ultimately , Berlin ’ s guidelines are flexible enough that some schools – particularly those with enough space to maintain the required distance – could go back to full capacity .
In France , the Ministry of Education has left the decision to open in the hands of local government and school @ @ @ @ @ @ @ say experts , in a country where education is “ extremely centralized.
” The French education minister expects about 1 million students to return to school , with most of France ’ s 50,500 schools slated to open in some form .
Still , about 10 % of towns aren ’ t expected to reopen schools yet .
“ The pandemic is forcing us to decentralize a bit , ” says Mr. Dubet .
“ We ’ re going to go from a national policy , which is extremely powerful in France , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new experience for us.
” What is not new , however , is a long-standing familiarity with having to occasionally miss school .
In 1968 , a social movement led by university students brought the country to a standstill .
Earlier this academic year , students of all ages missed class intermittently over the course of about two months due to nationwide strikes against the government ’ s pension reform plans .
In 1968 , no one recorded negative effects of time away in terms of learning gaps , says Mr. Dubet , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ The major concern [ now ] is that students can see their teachers and friends again , that their parents can start working again .
Not the education itself.
” For schools opening this week , a 56-page guideline lays out 1 meter ( 3 feet ) of distance between desks and a maximum of 15 students per class .
Teachers must wear masks ; no ball-playing is allowed .
And while preschools and elementary schools open this week , middle schools will follow next week , and high schools at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ look completely different , says Laadja Mamadi , director of a Paris elementary school .
“ It ’ s not going to be school as we know it , ” says Ms. Mamadi .
“ We teachers will need to adopt new habits , and so will the students.
” At the 7ème Art public preschool in Paris , for example , teacher Justine Cocquerelle is scanning her classroom to see what needs to be moved , removed , or replaced .
Tiny tables host only one miniature chair each ; a classroom @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only take seven at a time , each at his or her own table .
Building blocks have been tucked away , and a blanket has been tossed over the books .
“ I can ’ t leave out anything that ’ s shared between children , ” says Ms. Cocquerelle , who returned to school a few days ahead of Thursday ’ s official reopening .
Even the class rabbit , Susie , has been removed from the classroom now that cleaners will be using bleach to disinfect the room at least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ m trying to figure out how I ’ m going to do this.
” She plans lots of written activities , reading , and singing .
Art projects mean individual portions of paint , glue , and tape .
Bathroom procedures are still a work in progress , as the four small toilets don ’ t allow enough distance .
What ’ s clear is that Ms. Cocquerelle will now have double the workload , since she ’ ll be prepping both in-class activities and online lessons for those who might not return @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” says Ms. Cocquerelle .
“ But we hope [ the government ] sees that it ’ s working and they open things up a little more.
” France and Denmark have prioritized getting their youngest children back to school .
The little ones might be harder to socially distance , they ’ ve noted , but they need more guidance from an adult , and are still learning social competencies and how to organize work .
Plus , young children seem to be less susceptible to serious complications of the coronavirus , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they 're less likely to transmit it to adults .
By contrast , other countries like Germany have decided older students should return to schools first , as they ’ re closer to exams .
“ That ’ s not necessarily a pedagogical decision , because tests at the end of ninth grade have been canceled [ in Berlin ] , ” says Mr. Plocher , the social studies teacher .
Yet Dr. Karen Wistoft , a Danish education professor , has found that teenagers are feeling more lonely and understimulated during isolation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ learning potential of teens is so connected to their mental well-being , ” she says .
Back at Marie Mørks School near Copenhagen , Principal Christensen is trying to decide whether a ball is a toy or an “ educational tool.
” “ If it ’ s defined as a toy , it has to be wiped down every time it changes hands , ” says Mr. Christensen .
“ But if it is an educational tool , it only has to be cleaned after the school day has ended .
The rules @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ball a “ tool.
” “ We have to balance the rules with common sense !
” he says .
The Danes are feeling so confident with their reopening strategy that the government announced a second phase of reopening that allows high schoolers to return on May 18 .
The health authority has also reduced the required social distance in schools from 2 meters to 1 .
In Berlin , schools are a few weeks behind Denmark ’ s reopening , but Mr. Nölte , the teacher at a public school near Berlin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of joy in coming back together , even in staggered format .
“ I ’ ve noticed how happy the students are to see each other , ” he says .
“ Even between my colleagues , I think we will grow closer.
” Editor ’ s note : As a public service , all our coronavirus coverage is free .
No paywall .

Europe’s schools face new test: Teaching safely in a pandemic Collapse
Henrik Christensen looks tired.
Ever since the Danish government decreed its youngest children could go back to school, the principal of Marie Mørks School has been up late, planning logistics and sorting how to communicate with the families he serves. The youthful father runs a private school 30 miles north of the Danish capital of Copenhagen, and, with a toddler at home and a 12-year-old at the local public school, he understands the anxiety around bundling kids off to school during a pandemic.
“Of course, you are a bit nervous,” Mr. Christensen says. “But the children have missed school and their friends, and for them a month is an eternity. Their smiles take away most of my fears and reservations.”
Two months after most countries in Europe began closing down in response to the coronavirus, many are cautiously reopening schools alongside their economies, welcoming tens of millions of students back into the classroom in staggered shifts. Denmark was the first to reopen schools in mid-April, followed by France, Germany, Austria, and others. Parents expressed concerns about their children’s health, while teachers worked overtime to serve both students in classrooms and those at home who are waiting for a return date.
Editor’s note: As a public service, all our coronavirus coverage is free. No paywall.
In Denmark, logistics around hygiene have been painstaking. Door handles, washbasins, and school tables are wiped down three to five times daily. Classes have been halved, so students can maintain a 2-meter (6-foot) distance. Outdoor spaces are subdivided into five units, with each class appointed one portion during recess.
Even Legos posed a challenge, explains Mr. Christensen – “until a math teacher came up with a brilliant idea!” The Legos are now separated into four boxes, he says, with each set in use only every fourth day, since the virus is believed to die out after 48 hours on solid surfaces.
Jon Kaldan View caption Hide caption Marie Mørks School principal Henrik Christensen stands in his almost-empty schoolyard in Hillerød, Denmark, May 2020.
Indeed, European governments have been unrelenting with such requirements, and officials are watching health metrics closely. But most countries have otherwise allowed schools to make their own decisions about how lessons should be delivered and physical space partitioned, putting a premium on creativity and patience in an environment that has vastly changed since before the shutdown:
In Germany, one Berlin school has divided each class into four groups to maintain a required 1.5 meters of space between students. This means teachers are delivering the same lesson four separate times.
In Denmark, a tiny country with 1 million primary and secondary students, classes are advised to be held outdoors where possible. Outside Copenhagen, one school is tapping the gym as a classroom, and has staggered recess so equipment can be sanitized between shifts. Public trust in the Danish prime minister surged from 39% to nearly 80% at the end of April.
In France, a reopening of schools is purely voluntary, as the national government has shifted decision-making power to mayors and principals. Even so, the Education Ministry expects nearly 85% of its schools to reopen in some fashion by May 15.
Countries are weighing a combination of factors that include science, besides elements such as cultural priorities, as they work out the best path forward. “No one knows exactly what’s going to happen,” says François Dubet, a sociologist and professor emeritus of the University of Bordeaux. “If the number of sick people goes down, we’ll return to normal life, but if in 10 days that number goes up, it’s going to get very complicated.”
Germany: Back to school before summer, but no mandates
In Berlin, where schools began reopening in late April, many principals at the city’s 900 mostly public schools are staggering students’ reentry to school. That means some children are coming back for as little as two shifts a week for 150 minutes each time, so that a required 1.5 meters of distance can be maintained between students.
Axel Schmidt/Reuters View caption Hide caption A teacher welcomes students before the start of their high school graduation exams, during the spread of the coronavirus, at the Gymnasium Steglitz school in Berlin, April 20, 2020.
Teachers report excitement to be back on campus, but also a sense of exhaustion, as they’re taking on new duties including acting as “supervisor” to how students move around the building.
“As in, ‘Hey! You can’t stand that close to each other. Don’t walk towards each other! Use that exit, not this one,’” says Lydia Puschnerus, who teaches at a public gymnasium (equivalent to an American secondary school) in the Schöneberg district of Berlin. “It’s worked so far, but over the long term it’s stressful and unnatural.”
Björn Nölte, who teaches at a public school just outside Berlin, says daily routines have completely changed. “There’s always a colleague sitting in front of the bathrooms; there are always colleagues in all of the corridors, to make sure students don’t accidentally get close.”
Disinfectant has been dropped off at schools, and Berlin’s government has granted teachers a one-time payment of €16 ($17) to buy masks. Yet aside from “must follow” hygiene rules, Berlin has been reluctant to issue mandates, letting schools decide how to alter their curriculum, whether to skip exams, and how to stagger classes.
That comes out of the need to serve an incredibly diverse population, with varying degrees of income and digital access, says Ryan Plocher, a Berlin social studies teacher and teacher’s union representative.
“Principals really have to weigh [how to reopen], because schools in richer districts can do the whole thing by distance,” says Mr. Plocher. “But in poorer areas, some students haven’t been in contact with schools at all during the shutdown. Their parents can’t or won’t help, as in, ‘I’m not going to download PDFs over my private data plan.’”
Like the principal in Denmark, administrators at Mr. Plocher’s school have halved class sizes to maintain social distance. They’ve also eliminated or decided to monitor heavily the times that children might be in contact without masks. “That’s toileting, eating, drinking,” says Mr. Plocher, meaning that kids come onto school grounds only for a few hours at a time, with no lunch. Bathroom breaks are taken one student at a time.
Mr. Nölte’s school has subdivided some classes even further, into four units. With the help of co-teachers and supervisors, Mr. Nölte is teaching all four groups of a single German class simultaneously, shuttling between four rooms, which each houses five or six children.
Ultimately, Berlin’s guidelines are flexible enough that some schools – particularly those with enough space to maintain the required distance – could go back to full capacity.
France: A voluntary return
In France, the Ministry of Education has left the decision to open in the hands of local government and school leaders. That’s revolutionary, say experts, in a country where education is “extremely centralized.”
The French education minister expects about 1 million students to return to school, with most of France’s 50,500 schools slated to open in some form. Still, about 10% of towns aren’t expected to reopen schools yet.
Eric Gaillard/Reuters View caption Hide caption An employee cleans a corridor of a primary school on the eve of its reopening in Nice as France softens its strict lockdown rules during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease, May 11, 2020.
“The pandemic is forcing us to decentralize a bit,” says Mr. Dubet. “We’re going to go from a national policy, which is extremely powerful in France, to local policies. This is a new experience for us.”
What is not new, however, is a long-standing familiarity with having to occasionally miss school. In 1968, a social movement led by university students brought the country to a standstill. Earlier this academic year, students of all ages missed class intermittently over the course of about two months due to nationwide strikes against the government’s pension reform plans.
In 1968, no one recorded negative effects of time away in terms of learning gaps, says Mr. Dubet, and most likely no one will now. “The major concern [now] is that students can see their teachers and friends again, that their parents can start working again. Not the education itself.”
For schools opening this week, a 56-page guideline lays out 1 meter (3 feet) of distance between desks and a maximum of 15 students per class. Teachers must wear masks; no ball-playing is allowed. And while preschools and elementary schools open this week, middle schools will follow next week, and high schools at a yet-to-be named date.
Education will look completely different, says Laadja Mamadi, director of a Paris elementary school. “It’s not going to be school as we know it,” says Ms. Mamadi. “We teachers will need to adopt new habits, and so will the students.”
At the 7ème Art public preschool in Paris, for example, teacher Justine Cocquerelle is scanning her classroom to see what needs to be moved, removed, or replaced. Tiny tables host only one miniature chair each; a classroom that usually hosts 25 children will now only take seven at a time, each at his or her own table. Building blocks have been tucked away, and a blanket has been tossed over the books.
“I can’t leave out anything that’s shared between children,” says Ms. Cocquerelle, who returned to school a few days ahead of Thursday’s official reopening. Even the class rabbit, Susie, has been removed from the classroom now that cleaners will be using bleach to disinfect the room at least twice a day. “I’m trying to figure out how I’m going to do this.”
She plans lots of written activities, reading, and singing. Art projects mean individual portions of paint, glue, and tape. Bathroom procedures are still a work in progress, as the four small toilets don’t allow enough distance. What’s clear is that Ms. Cocquerelle will now have double the workload, since she’ll be prepping both in-class activities and online lessons for those who might not return.
“It’s super-complicated,” says Ms. Cocquerelle. “But we hope [the government] sees that it’s working and they open things up a little more.”
France and Denmark have prioritized getting their youngest children back to school. The little ones might be harder to socially distance, they’ve noted, but they need more guidance from an adult, and are still learning social competencies and how to organize work. Plus, young children seem to be less susceptible to serious complications of the coronavirus, and some anecdotal research has suggested that they're less likely to transmit it to adults.
By contrast, other countries like Germany have decided older students should return to schools first, as they’re closer to exams. “That’s not necessarily a pedagogical decision, because tests at the end of ninth grade have been canceled [in Berlin],” says Mr. Plocher, the social studies teacher.
Yet Dr. Karen Wistoft, a Danish education professor, has found that teenagers are feeling more lonely and understimulated during isolation than their younger peers. “The learning potential of teens is so connected to their mental well-being,” she says.
Denmark: Phase 2 of reopening
Back at Marie Mørks School near Copenhagen, Principal Christensen is trying to decide whether a ball is a toy or an “educational tool.”
“If it’s defined as a toy, it has to be wiped down every time it changes hands,” says Mr. Christensen. “But if it is an educational tool, it only has to be cleaned after the school day has ended. The rules are less strict.”
Jon Kaldan View caption Hide caption Fourth grade students are socially distancing in the gym, which has become a classroom at Marie Mørks School in Hillerød, Denmark, May 2020.
He declared the ball a “tool.” “We have to balance the rules with common sense!” he says.
The Danes are feeling so confident with their reopening strategy that the government announced a second phase of reopening that allows high schoolers to return on May 18. The health authority has also reduced the required social distance in schools from 2 meters to 1.
In Berlin, schools are a few weeks behind Denmark’s reopening, but Mr. Nölte, the teacher at a public school near Berlin, has noticed there’s plenty of joy in coming back together, even in staggered format. “I’ve noticed how happy the students are to see each other,” he says. “Even between my colleagues, I think we will grow closer.”
Editor’s note: As a public service, all our coronavirus coverage is free. No paywall.


csmonitor--2020-05-14--Amid pandemic woes, Trump turns spotlight onto ‘Obamagate’

In that sense , the charges may be an example of one of President Trump ’ s favorite – and most effective – tactics : diversion .
Time and again , the president has used the reach and repetition of social media and an accelerated news cycle to provide talking points for supporters , crowd out news that ’ s negative , and generally leave voters confused or even uncertain as to whether objective truth about the subject in question exists .
Unmasking is common – the National Security Agency has dealt with 10,000 to 17,000 such requests annually in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ requests came at a time when the sitting administration was growing increasingly concerned about contacts between the Trump team and Russian officials .
Republican senators on Wednesday released a list of Obama-era officials – including former Vice President Joe Biden – who , during the transition period , requested to “ unmask ” the name of an American caught on wiretap communicating with a foreign espionage target .
That American turned out to be former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn .
Some Republicans offered it as proof of a “ setup of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still holding the United States in its grip , President Donald Trump has spent the week railing about former President Barack Obama .
In a week when the coronavirus pandemic still held the U.S. in its grip and government health officials publicly warned the nation to be wary of restarting normal life prematurely , President Donald Trump accused his predecessor of criminal acts and hinted that a talk show host he dislikes was possibly involved in a murder .
Both charges are unfounded .
But they could be yet more examples of one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and most effective – rhetorical strategies : diversion .
At times of political stress , he has demonstrated a talent perhaps unrivaled in modern American politics for pointing one way , then another , then another , getting the media and public attention to jump from issue to issue until their heads spin .
Many presidents have used diversion as a communications tool , of course .
It can be helpful in changing the national focus and framing issues in terms more favorable to their administration .
President Trump ’ s innovation may @ @ @ @ @ @ @ claims that are far from rock-solid – and at times demonstrably false – with the reach and repetition inherent in social media , and the accelerated news cycle that social media feeds .
The resulting distractions provide talking points for his supporters , crowd out news that ’ s negative to his administration , and generally leave voters confused and even uncertain as to whether objective truth about the subjects in question exists .
“ It ’ s a go-to strategy for Trump to point elsewhere when things go wrong and make a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ says Dominic Tierney , professor of political science at Swarthmore College .
An ability to seize the national agenda Throughout his tumultuous time in office , President Trump has shown an ability to again and again seize the national agenda and direct it where he wants , with a tweet , a press conference , or an off-hand comment as he strides toward his Marine 1 helicopter .
Last July , for instance , as special counsel Robert Mueller prepared to testify before Congress , the president unleashed a series of tweets criticizing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other things calling them “ a very Racist group of troublemakers.
” Unsurprisingly , the tweets received a large amount of news coverage .
More recently , House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats have accused him of trying to draw attention away from the federal government ’ s COVID-19 testing failures by suddenly announcing a suspension of legal immigration , and by tweeting support for protests calling for the reopening of state economies .
During the novel coronavirus crisis , President Trump has been an “ agent of distraction , ” said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ week , the president has been railing about former President Barack Obama .
Last Sunday – a day he tweeted or retweeted others 126 times , the third highest daily total during his time in office – President Trump accused his predecessor of undermining his administration by manipulating the “ deep state ” to falsely accuse former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn of criminal behavior .
On Thursday , President Trump on Twitter urged the Senate to call President Obama to testify .
“ If I were a Senator or Congressman , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ testify about the biggest political crime and scandal in the history of the USA , by FAR , is former President Obama .
He knew EVERYTHING , ” President Trump wrote .
“ No more Mr. Nice Guy !
” Asked about the president ’ s tweet , Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham , R-S.C. , told Politico : “ I don ’ t think now ’ s the time for me to do that .
I don ’ t know if that ’ s even possible.
” Senator Graham added : “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but be careful what you wish for.
” In its latest iteration , the “ Obamagate ” theory centers on “ unmasking.
” Under the law , U.S. intelligence redacts the names of American citizens caught on wiretaps communicating with foreign officials who are espionage targets .
But top officials can ask that the name of the American in the conversation be “ unmasked.
” Republican senators on Wednesday released a list of Obama-era officials who requested during the transition period to unmask a name that turned out to be Mr. Flynn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ director John Brennan , and Vice President Joe Biden .
Some Republicans immediately offered the list as proof that Mr. Biden was part of a “ setup of General Flynn ” that enmeshed the incoming Trump team in a “ Russia collusion hoax.
” But unmasking is common – the National Security Agency has dealt with 10,000 to 17,000 such requests annually in recent years , including under the Trump administration .
The officials making the requests would presumably not have known the name of the U.S. citizen in question in advance .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ at a time when the sitting administration was growing increasingly concerned about contacts between the Trump team and Russian officials .
It ’ s possible that some requests dealt with a phone call from a U.S. citizen to Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak , in which the American asked that Russia not respond to new Obama administration sanctions imposed as punishment for Moscow ’ s interference in the 2016 U.S. election .
Since the anonymous American ’ s call sought to undercut the foreign policy of the sitting U.S. president , the officials involved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been interested in that person ’ s identity – which was Mr Flynn .
Turning to another subject , on Mother ’ s Day President Trump also speculated on Twitter that MSNBC anchor Joe Scarborough might have killed someone .
“ Did he get away with murder ?
” the president ’ s tweet read , in part .
“ Some people think so.
” Mr. Scarborough and his wife and “ Morning Joe ” co-host Mika Brzezinski have long been one of the president ’ s favorite foils .
Mr. Scarborough was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ late 1990s , and the murder reference stems from the death of a young female aide in his district office .
At the time , Mr. Scarborough was in Washington , not Florida .
Authorities determined after an investigation that she died after losing consciousness due to a heart condition and falling , striking her head on a table .
The circumstances prompted conspiracy theories , according to a 2017 Washington Post investigation , which concluded : “ no foul play was suspected , and her death was ultimately ruled an accident by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ far from the first chief executive to try and drive public attention away from subjects that are politically sensitive .
“ Distraction is Politics 101 .
At some level , this is just woven into the fabric of how leaders operate around the U.S. and the world , ” says Dr. Tierney .
Prior to the Civil War , President James Buchanan tried to distract voters from the national schism over slavery by mounting a federal expedition to subdue Mormons in Utah , who were then resisting U.S. rule .
“ I believe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crisis ] with the almost universal excitements of an Anti-Mormon Crusade , ” adviser Robert Tyler wrote in an 1857 letter to Buchanan .
This worked – briefly .
But the Mormons and the feds struck a compromise , and the struggle over slavery known as Bloody Kansas loomed again .
In a more modern example , President Lyndon B. Johnson in early 1966 was eager to distract Americans from upcoming Senate hearings he knew would be critical of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War .
On the spur of the moment , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Hawaii for a quick conference on improving South Vietnamese domestic conditions .
This was a brief success , but the Senate hearings , held by Sen. William Fulbright of Arkansas , went on for years .
In that sense , the Hawaii jaunt did little to affect overall public opinion .
Distractions , almost by definition , can only last so long .
That may prove true even in the current political and social American environment .
On the one hand , President Trump commands an instant audience that would be the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ envy of any previous Oval Office occupant .
His tweets are retweeted by millions of followers and covered , and thus amplified , not only by Fox News but also CNN and the New York Times .
The conservative media network consisting of Fox , Rush Limbaugh , and others is something that Republican presidents like Richard Nixon could only have dreamed of as a means to project their points of view .
But like LBJ , President Trump may find that while his attempts to raise different subjects may work for a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conditions persist longer .
The president ’ s distraction attempts have been much less effective during the pandemic , says Vanessa Beasley , an associate professor of communications studies at Vanderbilt University who studies presidential rhetoric .
“ COVID-19 has presented a unique rhetorical challenge to President Trump , ” she says via email .
He ’ s no longer able to point to the strength of the economy , she says .
Most of his political rivals have gone quiet .
The virus itself can ’ t be tweeted away .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lengthy briefings .
“ If , before COVID-19 , he was always asking us to look elsewhere in times of trouble , right now he is inviting us to look directly at him , ” Dr. Beasley says .
That will probably reassure his strong supporters , she says .
But the experience of recent weeks has shown it also has rhetorical costs , especially when he speaks about medical treatments and their efficacy .
“ If he is counting on his presence to calm viewers and distract them from the costs of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this strategy is effective , ” she says .

In that sense, the charges may be an example of one of President Trump’s favorite – and most effective – tactics: diversion. Time and again, the president has used the reach and repetition of social media and an accelerated news cycle to provide talking points for supporters, crowd out news that’s negative, and generally leave voters confused or even uncertain as to whether objective truth about the subject in question exists.
Unmasking is common – the National Security Agency has dealt with 10,000 to 17,000 such requests annually in recent years. And some of the requests came at a time when the sitting administration was growing increasingly concerned about contacts between the Trump team and Russian officials.
Many presidents have used diversion as a tool at times of political stress. But President Trump has demonstrated a talent perhaps unrivaled at getting the media and public to jump from issue to issue until they lose focus.
Republican senators on Wednesday released a list of Obama-era officials – including former Vice President Joe Biden – who, during the transition period, requested to “unmask” the name of an American caught on wiretap communicating with a foreign espionage target. That American turned out to be former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn. Some Republicans offered it as proof of a “setup of General Flynn.”
With the coronavirus pandemic still holding the United States in its grip, President Donald Trump has spent the week railing about former President Barack Obama.
In a week when the coronavirus pandemic still held the U.S. in its grip and government health officials publicly warned the nation to be wary of restarting normal life prematurely, President Donald Trump accused his predecessor of criminal acts and hinted that a talk show host he dislikes was possibly involved in a murder.
Both charges are unfounded. But they could be yet more examples of one of President Trump’s favorite – and most effective – rhetorical strategies: diversion. At times of political stress, he has demonstrated a talent perhaps unrivaled in modern American politics for pointing one way, then another, then another, getting the media and public attention to jump from issue to issue until their heads spin.
Many presidents have used diversion as a communications tool, of course. It can be helpful in changing the national focus and framing issues in terms more favorable to their administration.
Why We Wrote This Many presidents have used diversion as a tool at times of political stress. But President Trump has demonstrated a talent perhaps unrivaled at getting the media and public to jump from issue to issue until they lose focus.
President Trump’s innovation may be to combine a willingness to make claims that are far from rock-solid – and at times demonstrably false – with the reach and repetition inherent in social media, and the accelerated news cycle that social media feeds. The resulting distractions provide talking points for his supporters, crowd out news that’s negative to his administration, and generally leave voters confused and even uncertain as to whether objective truth about the subjects in question exists.
“It’s a go-to strategy for Trump to point elsewhere when things go wrong and make a song and dance about it,” says Dominic Tierney, professor of political science at Swarthmore College.
An ability to seize the national agenda
Throughout his tumultuous time in office, President Trump has shown an ability to again and again seize the national agenda and direct it where he wants, with a tweet, a press conference, or an off-hand comment as he strides toward his Marine 1 helicopter.
Last July, for instance, as special counsel Robert Mueller prepared to testify before Congress, the president unleashed a series of tweets criticizing four Democratic congresswomen of color, among other things calling them “a very Racist group of troublemakers.” Unsurprisingly, the tweets received a large amount of news coverage.
More recently, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats have accused him of trying to draw attention away from the federal government’s COVID-19 testing failures by suddenly announcing a suspension of legal immigration, and by tweeting support for protests calling for the reopening of state economies.
During the novel coronavirus crisis, President Trump has been an “agent of distraction,” said Speaker Pelosi on April 22.
This week, the president has been railing about former President Barack Obama. Last Sunday – a day he tweeted or retweeted others 126 times, the third highest daily total during his time in office – President Trump accused his predecessor of undermining his administration by manipulating the “deep state” to falsely accuse former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn of criminal behavior.
On Thursday, President Trump on Twitter urged the Senate to call President Obama to testify. “If I were a Senator or Congressman, the first person I would call to testify about the biggest political crime and scandal in the history of the USA, by FAR, is former President Obama. He knew EVERYTHING,” President Trump wrote. “No more Mr. Nice Guy!”
Asked about the president’s tweet, Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Politico: “I don’t think now’s the time for me to do that. I don’t know if that’s even possible.”
Senator Graham added: “I understand President Trump’s frustration, but be careful what you wish for.”
In its latest iteration, the “Obamagate” theory centers on “unmasking.” Under the law, U.S. intelligence redacts the names of American citizens caught on wiretaps communicating with foreign officials who are espionage targets. But top officials can ask that the name of the American in the conversation be “unmasked.”
Republican senators on Wednesday released a list of Obama-era officials who requested during the transition period to unmask a name that turned out to be Mr. Flynn. The list of officials includes then-CIA director John Brennan, and Vice President Joe Biden.
Joshua Roberts/Reuters/File View caption Hide caption Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn departs after his sentencing was delayed at U.S. District Court in Washington, on December 18, 2018. Republican senators this week released a list of Obama-era officials who requested during the transition period to 'unmask' a name that turned out to be General Flynn. The list of officials includes then-CIA director John Brennan, and Vice President Joe Biden.
Some Republicans immediately offered the list as proof that Mr. Biden was part of a “setup of General Flynn” that enmeshed the incoming Trump team in a “Russia collusion hoax.”
But unmasking is common – the National Security Agency has dealt with 10,000 to 17,000 such requests annually in recent years, including under the Trump administration. The officials making the requests would presumably not have known the name of the U.S. citizen in question in advance.
And some of the unmasking requests came at a time when the sitting administration was growing increasingly concerned about contacts between the Trump team and Russian officials. It’s possible that some requests dealt with a phone call from a U.S. citizen to Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, in which the American asked that Russia not respond to new Obama administration sanctions imposed as punishment for Moscow’s interference in the 2016 U.S. election.
Since the anonymous American’s call sought to undercut the foreign policy of the sitting U.S. president, the officials involved in making that policy might well have been interested in that person’s identity – which was Mr Flynn.
Turning to another subject, on Mother’s Day President Trump also speculated on Twitter that MSNBC anchor Joe Scarborough might have killed someone. “Did he get away with murder?” the president’s tweet read, in part. “Some people think so.”
Mr. Scarborough and his wife and “Morning Joe” co-host Mika Brzezinski have long been one of the president’s favorite foils. Mr. Scarborough was a GOP congressman from Florida in the late 1990s, and the murder reference stems from the death of a young female aide in his district office.
At the time, Mr. Scarborough was in Washington, not Florida. Authorities determined after an investigation that she died after losing consciousness due to a heart condition and falling, striking her head on a table.
The circumstances prompted conspiracy theories, according to a 2017 Washington Post investigation, which concluded: “no foul play was suspected, and her death was ultimately ruled an accident by the medical examiner.”
‘Distraction is Politics 101’
President Trump is far from the first chief executive to try and drive public attention away from subjects that are politically sensitive.
“Distraction is Politics 101. At some level, this is just woven into the fabric of how leaders operate around the U.S. and the world,” says Dr. Tierney.
Prior to the Civil War, President James Buchanan tried to distract voters from the national schism over slavery by mounting a federal expedition to subdue Mormons in Utah, who were then resisting U.S. rule.
“I believe that we can supersede the [abolition crisis] with the almost universal excitements of an Anti-Mormon Crusade,” adviser Robert Tyler wrote in an 1857 letter to Buchanan.
This worked – briefly. But the Mormons and the feds struck a compromise, and the struggle over slavery known as Bloody Kansas loomed again.
Library of Congress View caption Hide caption Prior to the Civil War, President James Buchanan tried to distract voters from the national schism over slavery by mounting a federal expedition to subdue Mormons in Utah, who were then resisting U.S. rule.
In a more modern example, President Lyndon B. Johnson in early 1966 was eager to distract Americans from upcoming Senate hearings he knew would be critical of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.
On the spur of the moment, LBJ flew with much of his Cabinet to Hawaii for a quick conference on improving South Vietnamese domestic conditions. This was a brief success, but the Senate hearings, held by Sen. William Fulbright of Arkansas, went on for years. In that sense, the Hawaii jaunt did little to affect overall public opinion. Distractions, almost by definition, can only last so long.
Tweets are short, pandemics are longer
That may prove true even in the current political and social American environment.
On the one hand, President Trump commands an instant audience that would be the envy of LBJ – indeed, the envy of any previous Oval Office occupant. His tweets are retweeted by millions of followers and covered, and thus amplified, not only by Fox News but also CNN and the New York Times.
The conservative media network consisting of Fox, Rush Limbaugh, and others is something that Republican presidents like Richard Nixon could only have dreamed of as a means to project their points of view.
But like LBJ, President Trump may find that while his attempts to raise different subjects may work for a period of time, the underlying national conditions persist longer.
The president’s distraction attempts have been much less effective during the pandemic, says Vanessa Beasley, an associate professor of communications studies at Vanderbilt University who studies presidential rhetoric.
“COVID-19 has presented a unique rhetorical challenge to President Trump,” she says via email.
He’s no longer able to point to the strength of the economy, she says. Most of his political rivals have gone quiet. The virus itself can’t be tweeted away. And he himself has taken the stage for lengthy briefings.
“If, before COVID-19, he was always asking us to look elsewhere in times of trouble, right now he is inviting us to look directly at him,” Dr. Beasley says.
Get stories that
empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
That will probably reassure his strong supporters, she says. But the experience of recent weeks has shown it also has rhetorical costs, especially when he speaks about medical treatments and their efficacy.
“If he is counting on his presence to calm viewers and distract them from the costs of COVID-19, it is not clear that this strategy is effective,” she says.


csmonitor--2020-05-08--Wisdom from WWII vets as COVID-19 puts V-E Day on hold

Seventy-five years after World War II ended in Europe , The Associated Press spoke to veterans who endured mortal danger , oppression , and fear .
As they mark Victory in Europe Day on Friday , they also are dealing with loneliness brought on by the coronavirus pandemic .
Here is some of their testimony .
Tony Vaccaro is one of the few people alive who can claim to have survived the Battle of Normandy and COVID-19 .
He was dealt a bad hand early , as his mother died during childbirth a few years before tuberculosis claimed his father @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an orphan in Italy .
By World War II he was an American G.I .
Now , he is recovering from COVID-19 .
He attributes his longevity to `` blind luck '' and determination .
`` To me , the greatest thing that you can do is challenge the world , '' he said .
`` And most of these challenges I win .
That 's what keeps me going . ''
Mr. Vaccaro 's grit carried him into a lifetime of photography that began as a combat infantryman when he stowed a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
One of his famous images , `` Kiss of Liberation , '' showed a U.S. sergeant kissing a French girl at the end of Nazi occupation .
Mr. Vaccaro documented the reconstruction of Europe and returned to the U.S. where he worked for magazines such as Look and Life and has fond memories of photographing celebrities including Sophia Loren , John .
F. Kennedy , Georgia O'Keefe , and Pablo Picasso .
Mr. Vaccaro lives in Queens , the New York City borough ravaged by the coronavirus , and next to his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ virus in April from his son or in their neighborhood , his daughter-in-law Maria said .
He was in the hospital two days and spent another week recovering .
`` That was it , '' she said .
`` He 's walking around like nothing happened . ''
V-E Day was the end of four days of celebration for Ken Hay .
It began when the former prisoner of war got his first sight of home in almost a year from a Lancaster bomber he flew back in .
`` I went back @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was at first disappointed to see only water , but quickly realized that I was looking backwards ... And then , rather like a medal ribbon , there was the edge of the water , a grayish-blue , the white breakers , a white cliff edge and then green grass – there 's no color like English green , '' he said .
The past 11 months had been grim .
Serving in the 4th Dorset Battalion of the 43rd Wessex Division , he was separated from his brother , Bill , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Normandy .
He was forced to work in a coal mine until the Nazi war machine began to unravel , and he was liberated in Germany by American troops .
After returning home to London , Mr. Hay learned Bill was stationed nearby .
`` Home , '' Mr. Hay wired his brother .
`` Can you get leave ? ''
On V-E Day , Mr. Hay and his family listened to Winston Churchill 's broadcast , then attended a special service at church .
`` We were walking back home … when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
`` I turned around and there was my brother running down the road to get home , and he 'd spotted us .
We just threw our arms around each other .
The last time I 'd seen him was out in the field in Normandy . ''
Both went into town in their uniforms .
There were crowds everywhere , and some girls called for a kiss .
`` Who were we to demur ? ''
he said .
Mervyn Kersh likes to joke that he was probably the last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ surrendered .
Pvt .
Kersh , who was with forces that liberated the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp , was ordered to return to England for deployment to Japan so he was on a blacked-out train crossing Europe when the celebrations began .
By the time he got to London , the party was over .
The cancellation of festivities marking the 75th anniversary of V-E Day offered fresh disappointment .
`` There 's nothing going on , which is a great shame because this is the last chance those who took part in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` If you wait for another five years – 80 years – I do n't think many of us will be here .
Not many of us are here now . ''
It is also a time to remember – not just the war but its aftermath .
Mr. Kersh is proud that Europe has remained largely peaceful since then , and for his role in defeating the Nazis .
`` I may have been a small cog , '' Mr. Kersh said .
`` But I made sure that I never @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 'Something Had To Be Done' Forgive British veteran Bob Sullivan for being unfussed about V-E Day .
After all , on May 8 , 1945 , he was lying in Cossham Hospital , having been wounded in the closing days of the fight to defeat the Nazis .
As he could n't move because of a plaster cast on his leg , he was n't even able to attend a celebratory supper .
But more than that .
Mr. Sullivan points out that the war was n't really over .
`` The war @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on , '' he said .
`` I had visions of fighting it out with the Japanese . ''
While Mr. Sullivan is proud of his service , he points out that it was n't just the soldiers who won the war .
Everyone was involved in the defeat of Adolf Hitler .
`` We just did our bit , '' he said .
`` Everyone was in the same boat .
Something had to be done . ''
Now a pensioner at the Royal Hospital Chelsea , a home for Army veterans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ view to lockdown and the downsizing of the anniversary celebrations .
His movements are restricted , so something simple – like a walk in the sunshine – is more meaningful than a parade these days .
`` We have a beautiful park here , '' he said .
`` It is , to my mind , quite attractive . ''
This story was reported by The Associated Press .
Richard Drew contributed from New York and Raf Casert from Brussels .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , the Monitor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus coverage .
It ’ s free .

Seventy-five years after World War II ended in Europe, The Associated Press spoke to veterans who endured mortal danger, oppression, and fear. As they mark Victory in Europe Day on Friday, they also are dealing with loneliness brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. Here is some of their testimony.
Surviving Normandy And COVID-19
Tony Vaccaro is one of the few people alive who can claim to have survived the Battle of Normandy and COVID-19.
He was dealt a bad hand early, as his mother died during childbirth a few years before tuberculosis claimed his father. By age 5, he was an orphan in Italy. By World War II he was an American G.I.
Now, he is recovering from COVID-19. He attributes his longevity to "blind luck" and determination.
"To me, the greatest thing that you can do is challenge the world," he said. "And most of these challenges I win. That's what keeps me going."
Mr. Vaccaro's grit carried him into a lifetime of photography that began as a combat infantryman when he stowed a camera and captured close to 8,000 photographs.
One of his famous images, "Kiss of Liberation," showed a U.S. sergeant kissing a French girl at the end of Nazi occupation.
Mr. Vaccaro documented the reconstruction of Europe and returned to the U.S. where he worked for magazines such as Look and Life and has fond memories of photographing celebrities including Sophia Loren, John. F. Kennedy, Georgia O'Keefe, and Pablo Picasso.
Mr. Vaccaro lives in Queens, the New York City borough ravaged by the coronavirus, and next to his family.
He might have caught the virus in April from his son or in their neighborhood, his daughter-in-law Maria said. He was in the hospital two days and spent another week recovering.
"That was it," she said. "He's walking around like nothing happened."
Remembering The Joy Of Homecoming
V-E Day was the end of four days of celebration for Ken Hay.
It began when the former prisoner of war got his first sight of home in almost a year from a Lancaster bomber he flew back in.
"I went back to get a glimpse of England and was at first disappointed to see only water, but quickly realized that I was looking backwards ... And then, rather like a medal ribbon, there was the edge of the water, a grayish-blue, the white breakers, a white cliff edge and then green grass – there's no color like English green,'' he said.
The past 11 months had been grim. Serving in the 4th Dorset Battalion of the 43rd Wessex Division, he was separated from his brother, Bill, and captured by Germans during the invasion of Normandy. He was forced to work in a coal mine until the Nazi war machine began to unravel, and he was liberated in Germany by American troops.
After returning home to London, Mr. Hay learned Bill was stationed nearby.
"Home," Mr. Hay wired his brother. "Can you get leave?''
On V-E Day, Mr. Hay and his family listened to Winston Churchill's broadcast, then attended a special service at church.
"We were walking back home … when I heard footsteps,'' Mr. Hay said. "I turned around and there was my brother running down the road to get home, and he'd spotted us. We just threw our arms around each other. The last time I'd seen him was out in the field in Normandy."
Both went into town in their uniforms. There were crowds everywhere, and some girls called for a kiss.
"Who were we to demur?" he said.
Missing The Big Party – Twice
Mervyn Kersh likes to joke that he was probably the last British soldier to learn the Nazis had surrendered.
Pvt. Kersh, who was with forces that liberated the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, was ordered to return to England for deployment to Japan so he was on a blacked-out train crossing Europe when the celebrations began. By the time he got to London, the party was over.
The cancellation of festivities marking the 75th anniversary of V-E Day offered fresh disappointment.
"There's nothing going on, which is a great shame because this is the last chance those who took part in the war will have,'' he said.
"If you wait for another five years – 80 years – I don't think many of us will be here. Not many of us are here now."
It is also a time to remember – not just the war but its aftermath. Mr. Kersh is proud that Europe has remained largely peaceful since then, and for his role in defeating the Nazis.
"I may have been a small cog," Mr. Kersh said. "But I made sure that I never let the greater machine down!''
'Something Had To Be Done'
Forgive British veteran Bob Sullivan for being unfussed about V-E Day.
After all, on May 8, 1945, he was lying in Cossham Hospital, having been wounded in the closing days of the fight to defeat the Nazis.
As he couldn't move because of a plaster cast on his leg, he wasn't even able to attend a celebratory supper.
But more than that. Mr. Sullivan points out that the war wasn't really over.
"The war in the Far East was still going on,'' he said. "I had visions of fighting it out with the Japanese.''
While Mr. Sullivan is proud of his service, he points out that it wasn't just the soldiers who won the war. Everyone was involved in the defeat of Adolf Hitler.
"We just did our bit,'' he said. "Everyone was in the same boat. Something had to be done.''
Now a pensioner at the Royal Hospital Chelsea, a home for Army veterans, Mr. Sullivan has taken a philosophical view to lockdown and the downsizing of the anniversary celebrations. His movements are restricted, so something simple – like a walk in the sunshine – is more meaningful than a parade these days.
"We have a beautiful park here,'' he said. "It is, to my mind, quite attractive."
Get stories that
empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
This story was reported by The Associated Press. Richard Drew contributed from New York and Raf Casert from Brussels.
Editor’s note: As a public service, the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage. It’s free.


csmonitor--2020-05-08--‘Bridge to health’? Why some question India’s contact tracing app.

“ This is not just a privacy-versus-public-health story anymore , ” says Mr. McDonald .
“ Instead we ’ re making the turn into the field of fundamental rights.
” As knowledge about the novel coronavirus grows , the focus will shift to monitoring people ’ s behavior so the virus doesn ’ t spread , says digital expert Sean McDonald .
The problem will then become how to enforce policies in a way that respects human rights – especially for marginalized communities .
Aarogya Setu , or Bridge to Health , is voluntary , the government maintains .
Yet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ private-sector workers , and officials have proposed requiring it for services like the Metro .
The country has 1.3 billion people , 23 % of whom live below the poverty line , and is eager to allow laborers back to work .
But the government ’ s record on digital tools has left many experts skeptical that a tracing app could be deployed without violating civil liberties , or building larger surveillance systems that could be exploited down the road .
Many countries have toyed with using mobile phones to track the pandemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the United States , United Kingdom , Israel , and Russia .
But in India , the world ’ s largest democracy , the stakes are especially high .
After over a month of a particularly strict lockdown against COVID-19 , in which even walks are banned , Indians perching on terraces and balconies for what little fresh air they can get agree on one thing : Now is time to think about what comes next .
It ’ s clear that here , as elsewhere , people will not return to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time .
But as the costs of the stay-at-home order mount , the country is already deploying measures to gradually reopen as safely as possible .
Among these is a contact tracing app , Aarogya Setu ( Bridge to Health ) , which has been downloaded more than 50 million times in less than two weeks from its launch .
According to its creators , the app will enable citizens to self-assess their risk of contracting the novel coronavirus , based in part on identifying whether they ’ ve come in contact with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have toyed with using mobile phones to track the pandemic , despite concerns over privacy – including the United States , United Kingdom , Israel , and Russia .
But in India , the world ’ s largest democracy , the stakes are especially high .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , all our coronavirus coverage is free .
No paywall .
The country has 1.3 billion people , 23 % of whom live below the poverty line , and is eager to allow laborers back to work .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ digital tools has left many experts skeptical that a tracing app could be deployed without violating civil liberties , or building larger surveillance systems that could be exploited down the road .
For example Aadhaar , the world ’ s biggest biometric identification system , has been at the center of numerous controversies over the past decade , including massive data breaches .
Recently , a journalist ’ s investigation uncovered plans to combine Aadhaar with a range of other databases to create a registry of everything from someone ’ s caste and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Given the global scale of the coronavirus pandemic , governments may decide to use certain sophisticated technological responses .
And given that it is an extraordinary situation , it may be difficult to question the use of these systems , ” says Sidharth Deb , policy and parliamentary counsel at the nonprofit Internet Freedom Foundation in New Delhi , who recently released a working paper on COVID-19 tracing in India .
Early on in the pandemic , he explains , observers pointed to seeming success in places like Taiwan , Singapore @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , so the Indian government tried to replicate some of their solutions .
“ But instead of investing in testing , or health care facilities , ” he says , “ there ’ s been a greater emphasis on developing technological tools in India.
” Sumit Ray , a critical care specialist in a private hospital in Delhi , says he ’ s seen very few positive cases so far .
But he doubts that Aarogya Setu will be useful in keeping the situation under control .
“ Contact tracing and isolation can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such as talking with patients to reconstruct their movements , he says , and the project is based on shaky premises .
For example , Aarogya Setu can only be effective if at least half the population registers , according to its developers – in a country where only 1 in 4 own a smartphone .
And given the stigma of testing positive , and leaks that have exposed patients ’ identities , people are cautious .
In the past few weeks , people suspected of having COVID-19 have been assaulted , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Imagine what could happen to patients , ” says Dr. Ray .
With contact tracing apps , “ you are turning individuals at risk into criminals.
” Given the scale and risks of the pandemic , some public health experts have encouraged contact tracing apps , despite concerns about privacy .
But proximity doesn ’ t take into account factors such as whether people are wearing protective equipment , says Sean McDonald , a senior fellow at the Centre for International Governance Innovation in Canada .
An app “ drives people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ need , at a time when the single most important indicator of morbidity at this point is health care system capacity.
” Shriyak Jain , a young teacher living in a gated Delhi neighborhood , says he has downloaded the app , and he sees sharing personal data with the government as his duty in a time of crisis .
“ I particularly like the fact that the app contains all sorts of information related to COVID-19 , including live updates , steps to take for personal protection , and it knows whether @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infected person , ” he says .
Most of his neighbors and family share the same view , he says .
The government maintains that the app is optional , though it has made the app mandatory for all public- and private-sector employees .
“ It ’ s still voluntary , ” says Abhishek Singh , CEO of the National e-Governance Division with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology .
“ No one is forcing anyone to go to work ; one can stay home and be safe.
” The Monitor has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Delhi ’ s Residents Welfare Associations that instructs them to request residents download the app and report compliance to the city ’ s Disaster Management Authority .
Officials have proposed making it compulsory for other public activities , like traveling by Metro or plane , and the government has reportedly asked smartphone manufacturers to install the app by default .
The Noida municipality , in the outskirts of Delhi , has reportedly made not installing the app punishable with up to six months in jail .
There are also concerns about the app @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which critics call excessive .
Contact tracing can be performed with Bluetooth alone : When two phones are in proximity , they exchange a “ digital handshake , ” acknowledging that they ’ ve been in close contact without keeping a record of where or with whom .
No data , encrypted or not , is uploaded onto the server .
On the other hand , a GPS signal creates a map of each individual ’ s movements , enabling inferences about their work , socioeconomic status , and even political leanings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dismissed such concerns , saying the app , which is a public-private partnership , was built to put “ privacy first.
” “ All personal information submitted is securely encrypted [ before being ] stored on the server , ” says Mr. Singh .
He also defends the use of GPS technology .
“ Your location data , on an aggregated basis , will be used to identify the locations that need to be sanitized and where people need to be more deeply tested and identify emerging areas where infection outbreaks are likely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ The location data is not used for any other purpose.
” Of the many app experiments around the world , the only one that could become a model of ethical contact tracing , in Mr. McDonald ’ s opinion , is Australia ’ s .
The app “ lets contact tracers contact you personally if you show up as a proximity beacon to someone who ’ s been tested , ” he says , “ but the whole operation is truly voluntary.
” Australian officials say that the information won ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ India ’ s government , on the other hand , reserves the right to pass the data it collects through Aarogya Setu to other public agencies .
As knowledge about the novel coronavirus grows , the focus will shift to monitoring people ’ s behavior so the virus doesn ’ t spread , Mr. McDonald says .
The problem will then become how to enforce policies in a way that respects human rights .
“ Marginalized communities all over the world now have to consider the specter of having their movement tracked by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to them , ” he says .
In India , for example , discrimination against Muslims has escalated sharply ; days of deadly riots in February were the country ’ s worst interreligious violence in decades .
A Delhi event organized by an Islamic missionary group has been blamed for about 30 % of all COVID-19 cases reported between March and early April , causing another spike in anti-Muslim attacks .
But here , as elsewhere , groups may not have a choice about handing over their personal information if they want access @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not just a privacy-versus-public-health story anymore , ” says Mr. McDonald .
“ Instead we ’ re making the turn into the field of fundamental rights.
” Editor ’ s note : As a public service , all our coronavirus coverage is free .
No paywall .

“This is not just a privacy-versus-public-health story anymore,” says Mr. McDonald. “Instead we’re making the turn into the field of fundamental rights.”
As knowledge about the novel coronavirus grows, the focus will shift to monitoring people’s behavior so the virus doesn’t spread, says digital expert Sean McDonald. The problem will then become how to enforce policies in a way that respects human rights – especially for marginalized communities.
Aarogya Setu, or Bridge to Health, is voluntary, the government maintains. Yet it is already mandatory for public- and private-sector workers, and officials have proposed requiring it for services like the Metro.
Societies around the world are debating the pros and cons of apps to limit COVID-19. They raise questions about technology, privacy, and effectiveness, but also trust: Do people believe the government has their interests at heart?
The country has 1.3 billion people, 23% of whom live below the poverty line, and is eager to allow laborers back to work. But the government’s record on digital tools has left many experts skeptical that a tracing app could be deployed without violating civil liberties, or building larger surveillance systems that could be exploited down the road.
Many countries have toyed with using mobile phones to track the pandemic, despite concerns over privacy – including the United States, United Kingdom, Israel, and Russia. But in India, the world’s largest democracy, the stakes are especially high.
After over a month of a particularly strict lockdown against COVID-19, in which even walks are banned, Indians perching on terraces and balconies for what little fresh air they can get agree on one thing: Now is time to think about what comes next.
It’s clear that here, as elsewhere, people will not return to the norms of pre-pandemic life for a long time. But as the costs of the stay-at-home order mount, the country is already deploying measures to gradually reopen as safely as possible.
Among these is a contact tracing app, Aarogya Setu (Bridge to Health), which has been downloaded more than 50 million times in less than two weeks from its launch. According to its creators, the app will enable citizens to self-assess their risk of contracting the novel coronavirus, based in part on identifying whether they’ve come in contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19.
Why We Wrote This Societies around the world are debating the pros and cons of apps to limit COVID-19. They raise questions about technology, privacy, and effectiveness, but also trust: Do people believe the government has their interests at heart?
Many countries have toyed with using mobile phones to track the pandemic, despite concerns over privacy – including the United States, United Kingdom, Israel, and Russia. But in India, the world’s largest democracy, the stakes are especially high.
Editor’s note: As a public service, all our coronavirus coverage is free. No paywall.
The country has 1.3 billion people, 23% of whom live below the poverty line, and is eager to allow laborers back to work. But the government’s record on digital tools has left many experts skeptical that a tracing app could be deployed without violating civil liberties, or building larger surveillance systems that could be exploited down the road.
For example Aadhaar, the world’s biggest biometric identification system, has been at the center of numerous controversies over the past decade, including massive data breaches. Recently, a journalist’s investigation uncovered plans to combine Aadhaar with a range of other databases to create a registry of everything from someone’s caste and disabilities to his or her family tree.
“Given the global scale of the coronavirus pandemic, governments may decide to use certain sophisticated technological responses. And given that it is an extraordinary situation, it may be difficult to question the use of these systems,” says Sidharth Deb, policy and parliamentary counsel at the nonprofit Internet Freedom Foundation in New Delhi, who recently released a working paper on COVID-19 tracing in India.
Early on in the pandemic, he explains, observers pointed to seeming success in places like Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea, and even China, so the Indian government tried to replicate some of their solutions. “But instead of investing in testing, or health care facilities,” he says, “there’s been a greater emphasis on developing technological tools in India.”
False confidence?
Sumit Ray, a critical care specialist in a private hospital in Delhi, says he’s seen very few positive cases so far. But he doubts that Aarogya Setu will be useful in keeping the situation under control. “Contact tracing and isolation can be managed in other ways,” such as talking with patients to reconstruct their movements, he says, and the project is based on shaky premises.
For example, Aarogya Setu can only be effective if at least half the population registers, according to its developers – in a country where only 1 in 4 own a smartphone. And given the stigma of testing positive, and leaks that have exposed patients’ identities, people are cautious. In the past few weeks, people suspected of having COVID-19 have been assaulted, and aggression toward health care workers is rampant.
“Imagine what could happen to patients,” says Dr. Ray. With contact tracing apps, “you are turning individuals at risk into criminals.”
Given the scale and risks of the pandemic, some public health experts have encouraged contact tracing apps, despite concerns about privacy. But proximity doesn’t take into account factors such as whether people are wearing protective equipment, says Sean McDonald, a senior fellow at the Centre for International Governance Innovation in Canada. An app “drives people into seeking care that they may not need, at a time when the single most important indicator of morbidity at this point is health care system capacity.”
Citizens’ responsibility
Shriyak Jain, a young teacher living in a gated Delhi neighborhood, says he has downloaded the app, and he sees sharing personal data with the government as his duty in a time of crisis.
“I particularly like the fact that the app contains all sorts of information related to COVID-19, including live updates, steps to take for personal protection, and it knows whether you are getting in touch with an infected person,” he says.
Most of his neighbors and family share the same view, he says.
The government maintains that the app is optional, though it has made the app mandatory for all public- and private-sector employees. “It’s still voluntary,” says Abhishek Singh, CEO of the National e-Governance Division with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. “No one is forcing anyone to go to work; one can stay home and be safe.”
The Monitor has obtained a message circulating to heads of Delhi’s Residents Welfare Associations that instructs them to request residents download the app and report compliance to the city’s Disaster Management Authority. Officials have proposed making it compulsory for other public activities, like traveling by Metro or plane, and the government has reportedly asked smartphone manufacturers to install the app by default. The Noida municipality, in the outskirts of Delhi, has reportedly made not installing the app punishable with up to six months in jail.
There are also concerns about the app’s use of Bluetooth and GPS, which critics call excessive. Contact tracing can be performed with Bluetooth alone: When two phones are in proximity, they exchange a “digital handshake,” acknowledging that they’ve been in close contact without keeping a record of where or with whom. No data, encrypted or not, is uploaded onto the server. On the other hand, a GPS signal creates a map of each individual’s movements, enabling inferences about their work, socioeconomic status, and even political leanings, Mr. Deb explains.
Officials have dismissed such concerns, saying the app, which is a public-private partnership, was built to put “privacy first.”
“All personal information submitted is securely encrypted [before being] stored on the server,” says Mr. Singh. He also defends the use of GPS technology. “Your location data, on an aggregated basis, will be used to identify the locations that need to be sanitized and where people need to be more deeply tested and identify emerging areas where infection outbreaks are likely to occur,” he says. “The location data is not used for any other purpose.”
The bigger picture
Of the many app experiments around the world, the only one that could become a model of ethical contact tracing, in Mr. McDonald’s opinion, is Australia’s. The app “lets contact tracers contact you personally if you show up as a proximity beacon to someone who’s been tested,” he says, “but the whole operation is truly voluntary.” Australian officials say that the information won’t be used in other policy areas. India’s government, on the other hand, reserves the right to pass the data it collects through Aarogya Setu to other public agencies.
As knowledge about the novel coronavirus grows, the focus will shift to monitoring people’s behavior so the virus doesn’t spread, Mr. McDonald says. The problem will then become how to enforce policies in a way that respects human rights.
“Marginalized communities all over the world now have to consider the specter of having their movement tracked by people that have not always been kind to them,” he says.
In India, for example, discrimination against Muslims has escalated sharply; days of deadly riots in February were the country’s worst interreligious violence in decades. A Delhi event organized by an Islamic missionary group has been blamed for about 30% of all COVID-19 cases reported between March and early April, causing another spike in anti-Muslim attacks.
But here, as elsewhere, groups may not have a choice about handing over their personal information if they want access to basic services.
Get stories that
empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
“This is not just a privacy-versus-public-health story anymore,” says Mr. McDonald. “Instead we’re making the turn into the field of fundamental rights.”
Editor’s note: As a public service, all our coronavirus coverage is free. No paywall.