In-Person Contact in the Brooklyn Southwest Region
The Coronavirus pandemic became a clear existential threat for the geographic area of Brooklyn, New York, USA, in March 2020.
The virus continues to mutate into more communicable and deadly forms. Variants of the virus continue to spread. Cases, hospitalizations, and deaths continue to occur throughout the world as well as here, though this geographic area has a relatively low level of infection at this time.
Parts of Brooklyn have higher rates of infection than others. The southern portion of our RC Region has higher rates.
The vast majority of serious COVID cases are now reportedly among unvaccinated people. However, breakthrough cases in vaccinated people have shown that one can still contract and transmit COVID by means of aerosolized droplets expelled from mucous membranes. When we Co-Counsel, we expel these droplets as we talk, yawn, blow our noses, and so on.
Since March 2020, we have avoided physical contact to prevent contamination. Thankfully, technology has allowed us to stay in contact and continue our practice of RC. We all miss the physical contact that is a real human need, but many of us have vulnerabilities that make it too risky to have that contact yet.
We are all, at times, vulnerable to acting on our feelings. Sometimes we react to peer pressure or the advice of those we view as being in authority relative to ourselves. We all need to discharge and think hard about what makes sense for ourselves, our families, and our communities, including our RC Community.
A PROPOSED GUIDELINE
On August 9, 2021, about a third of our Region came together electronically to think about a proposed guideline for our local practice at this time. (The situation, and advice from health experts, changes almost daily.) The following proposal evolved from that meeting and from reading proposals from other Regions:
1. We will continue to discharge on the pandemic in Co-Counseling sessions, classes, and workshops. We will work on the feelings it has brought up—the early loneliness, fear, anger, boredom, and grief; the physical discomfort of extended Zoom participation; and so on—so we can think about it as clearly as possible.
We will discharge on, think about, and discuss the pandemic in our regular weekly classes so that each Co-Counselor gets to openly consider and consult about their plans before deciding whether and how to meet with another Co-Counselor in person. RC teachers will consult with their Area Reference Persons on issues that arise in these classes, and Area Reference Persons will bring any concerns to their Regional Reference Person.
2. All Co-Counselors will take the following considerations, among others, into account in deciding whether to meet with each other in person:
- The vaccination status of themselves, the other Co-Counselor, and the people in both the Co-Counselors’ households
- Any health vulnerabilities of either Co-Counselor or the people with whom they are in regular contact
- Whether either Co-Counselor is in regular unmasked contact with unvaccinated, vaccination-ineligible, or other vulnerable people (for example, immunocompromised people, older people, and so on)
- The number of other people that each Co-Counselor is having in-person Co-Counseling sessions with
- Other risk situations, such as recent travel (by airplane, to places where vaccination rates are low or cases are high, and so on) or attendance at indoor events with large groups of people
If a Co-Counseling pair decides to meet in person, they will discuss their agreements for the sessions (for example, mask wearing, social distancing, outdoors versus indoors, hand holding) and hold each other to them.
3. At this time, we will not meet indoors for any classes, workshops, or other group activities.
4. Family-work special times may occur outdoors if all the participants—including young people (currently restricted to those twelve years of age or older)—are vaccinated and if all the items in number 2 are taken into consideration.
5. All of us are encouraged to stay up-to-date on the scientific information and guidance provided by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and reputable local sources (such as local health departments). We will review and update our actions and policy based on the ever-evolving situation, and guidelines from the scientific community.
If approved, this policy will be distributed to our Region for discussion and discharge in every class.
(Present Time 205, October 2021)