Ditch the 2020 Designer Covid Masks

One thing that came out of 2020 that has truly troubled me is designer face masks. I wish this style could have remained in the past and not become so popular. I understand that folks have a need to make money and marketing these made to order masks has become big business. It causes me to cringe however to consider that anyone is making big bucks from a pandemic where millions around the globe have died. When COVID-19 first was reported in China, news reports showed large groups of people walking through the streets wearing traditional surgical masks.

The sight of those traditional facial coverings let everyone know that something deadly was going on. Doctors and dentists wore those surgical masks to prevent germs when performing surgery. I know people who used them to protect their immune systems when they were dealing with certain illnesses, or so they did not smell fresh cut grass which caused allergies. Until now, it was always understood that this item was related to the prevention of illness. Once the pandemic spread to America, people became pretty creative with the masks.

Dominos Pizza and other companies gave their employees masks with their respective logos and that is understandable because it's part of a uniform. Sports team masks and gaitors also became popular. It seemed everyone wanted to make some type of statement. On Facebook, I saw an advertisement for face coverings with designer logos to match shoes and expensive handbags. I saw one woman who was wearing a gold Gucci mask that matched the logo on her and shirt and shoes.

I was horrified because wearing these protective coverings was a reminder to me of all the many people worldwide who had perished from the coronavirus. I wondered why so many individuals were having fun with an accessory that represented suffering and death? Can you even imagine thousands of Americans wearing designer clothing advertising the tragedy of 911? I think not. I know this is just my opinion but I believe it to be in poor taste to capitalize and profit from COVID-19. It's even worse that Americans so easily go along with current trends.

The purpose of the mask is to protect others from our germs and offer some protection for ourselves against COVID-19, which can kill. This is why each time I saw the names and faces of coronavirus victims on CNN I was so troubled. When the numbers of those infected along with the mounting death toll began to rise this was truly troubling. Everywhere you turned the experts were saying to wear the masks, along with social distancing and proper hygiene. It was all about saving lives, yet t turned into a popular trend.

What really got to me was a mask I saw that was studded with diamonds and cost 1.5 million dollars? This is pretty outrageous and probably does not protect as well as a surgical face covering, that you purchase at Dollar Tree. With all the suffering and death you would think we humans would become more sensitive and caring, but alas we have not. Protective coverings are a necessity in this day and age and may prevent illness and even save a life. Can we however leave the excess behind and take this pandemic seriously. At this point, more than 400,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 and 2.5 million worldwide have succumbed to the disease.

I listened to the stories of those who were not able to visit their loved ones in the hospital and could not say goodbye to the ones who died. I remember when masks were in short supply and health care workers had to use the same one when going from patient to patient. Can we please find other ways to be trendy and stick to traditional disposable masks, or at least use cloth ones that don't have anybody's name on them? How about being more sensitive to the pandemic in 2021 and considering the designer masks to be "so 2020"?