This is a weird coincidence for me because, as of yesterday, I am fully vaccinated. I had my Moderna shot 15 days ago, and so as a result I just hit the cut under people who are applicable to this. And today, I will be going out in public for really the first time to a number of places, including a movie theater, bookshops, and a restaurant, since the pandemic began. It is probable that many of the businesses & places I will shop at today will not have changed their policies, and indeed Minneapolis (which I live near & which will be part of my stops) doesn't appear to have lifted their ban yet even if the full state has. As a result, I will be wearing a mask while shopping. But from a medical standpoint, I don't have to, and that's exciting.
What's surprising to me, but shouldn't be, was the reaction to this news yesterday, as many people, mostly from the pro-vaccine side of the Covid pandemic conversation (and thus, the people that are least vulnerable) have been criticizing the move. They have said it's "too soon" and that we'll end up back in quarantine in a few weeks because of the spike in cases. What's fascinating is that these concerns are coming from people who are largely fully-vaccinated, who are according to the CDC (the scientists & experts on this subject) the ones who know the facts. In a time where pro-vaccine people (including myself) have spent months insisting & begging & helping friends/family/coworkers/mortal enemies get vaccinated, it's jarring to see such a reaction when the science is giving good news instead of bad. Even in my gut, I had a quick "well, I'm going to still wear a mask" reaction, and I had to question-is this similar to what anti-vaxxers have been doing for months, essentially denying the science because it doesn't fit my worldview?
There are, to be fair, reasons to wonder if stopping mask mandates as of today, specifically is the right choice. Case counts are still at a higher-level than they should be (it is probable that even in a best case scenario for the pandemic that in the coming months thousands of people will die from the Covid-19 disease in the United States, though it's worth noting that virtually all, if not all of them total, will have been people who were not fully vaccinated), and millions of Americans who are vaccinated are not "fully vaccinated." All Americans became eligible for the vaccine on April 19th. Assuming that they got the vaccine within two weeks of that date (giving some leeway to get appointments), and that we had six weeks after that (the longest of the three "fully vaccinated" windows), that would mean that most Americans who prioritized getting a vaccine would have reached that status by June 14th. Opening up now does put undo pressure on people who were not eligible to be fully-vaccinated, and therefore are both A) required to wear face masks & more vulnerable and B) not vaccinated because they chose to wait a particularly long period of time. From a cost-risk analysis, it's debatable waiting until mid-June would've been a decent argument to minimize spread as much as possible, and putting the least amount of pressure on those who followed-the-rules.
But that's not really where the focus of the ire comes from-it seems to be more from a place of "I know better than the scientists" where people simply refuse to believe that this is over, or that we have reached whatever magical moment of herd immunity each individual person has in their head, and I think that's an instinct we should question. We have all been through trauma in the past 14 months. Even if you didn't get Covid or experience employment insecurity or lose a friend/family member to the disease, the shock of the past year has been real & it will take time to adjust. Assuming that this is just "done" now is hard to grasp. I will wear masks at least for a few weeks not just out-of-manners, but because in crowded scenarios I will need some sort of help getting back after being so alone for months & months & months...it'll be a bit of a security blanket.
However, I think questioning the science behind this decision does cross a line away from "personal responsibility" and into "questioning the facts because it doesn't match my worldview." This is hard, and I'm offering up some sympathy for it because it's such a shock, but if your first instinct is to go on social media and proclaim "I'm still going to wear a mask, and shame on you if you don't" (which I saw a lot of yesterday on Twitter), that's wrong, and it's something we need to check because it is, indeed, doubting the scientists/doctors.
There are several reasons to wear masks right now, some more legitimate than others. Obviously if you're not fully-vaccinated, you should wear a mask (and you should also get your vaccine). If you have family members in your household who are not fully-vaccinated or not eligible to be fully-vaccinated (predominantly parents of children under 12), it is understandable to exhibit a modicum of caution here & continue wearing a mask even if you're vaccinated; it's also going to be a lot easier in some households to have kids keep wearing their masks if "mom/dad is wearing a mask too," and I 100% understand this impulse. If you're in a situation that the CDC recommends wearing one (public transit or in a medical facility) or local ordinance does (don't be the asshole who doesn't wear a mask when they're at a business who hasn't changed their policy-this happened overnight, give companies a chance to react), wear your mask. Or, quite frankly, if you feel more comfortable in certain situations wearing a mask as you rejoin society, it's fine...but it's worth acknowledging that in the latter's case you should start to understand you don't need to, and you certainly shouldn't expect others to because the science doesn't bear out your fear.
"Trust the science" goes both ways, and while I'm not going to shame anyone who still feels they need a mask (including myself) in certain situations, I don't think it's fair to expect others who are fully-vaccinated to acquiesce to your worldview when the science is on their side. Unlike not vaccinating, there's not a public risk in you wearing a mask, so I don't have a problem with it (and you could argue that from a personal standpoint you're protecting yourself from other communicable diseases like the common cold or the flu, which may be a reason to wear them indefinitely at airports or on public transit if you so choose), but you can't expect others to side with you when the facts are on their side. I'm not going to shame anyone for whatever path they take forward (as long as they get vaccinated as they are able), but I also think the time has come where we have to embrace the science even if it makes us nervous. You should not be shaming people for "following doctor's orders" if they are fully vaccinated, and while that is an adjustment on mask-wearing, it's one we need to make.
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