by Sam K.
Rights are not rights if we don’t use them, and we must use exercise them openly, frequently, and without reservation.
I don’t usually talk about masking very much, I just do it. I find people talk to me about masking more than I talk to them about it. The act of masking causes others to reflect; perhaps to feel some sort of guilt about themselves, or judgement about me and other maskers. This one time, let me make the case for masking for 2025 and the foreseeable future.
The techno-surveillance police state is already here – its gradually cemented itself in the digital and physical world we navigate our lives through. After 9/11, the normalization of surveillance has evolved from an initial public support for sacrificing freedoms for supposed “public safety,” to the shocking revelations of Edward Snowden’s whistleblowing, to an almost pathetic view of the security theater of going through TSA. Cameras are watching us in the sky – far enough away where we cannot seem them, but precise enough to see details on the ground. Many people tend to feel hopeless about avoiding such surveillance when thinking about this – but hope is not lost. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has been fighting for digital privacy rights for decades, paving the way for alternatives to Big Tech such as the Graphene OS android operating system, Proton emerging as a Google suite alternative, and the more widespread adoption of Signal. The use of these digital tools help to shield us from the surveillance state, but the digital privacy community and socialist organizers are failing to discuss how we can protect ourselves from both the surveillance state and fascist forces in public. Being tracked by the state or being doxxed and identified by fascist forces are real threats we must confront head-on.
Historically, bans on facial coverings have a mixed history in the United States. One the one hand, there were some 20th century laws passed in various states in efforts to crack down the Klu Klux Klan, while later being applied to Occupy Movements. On the other hand, In 1845, New York State passed an anti-mask law for “public safety” after a tenants’ revolt, known as the Anti-Rent War, or the Helderberg War. Many states, and the District of Columbia, either already have anti-mask laws on the books, have pushed for them recently, or likely will continue to push for them. While the legal statuses have been challenged and some have been struck down by the Supreme Court, we know these liberal institutions have already failed us, and will continue to enable fascism.
So, what happens when ICE starts going after socialists? Will you wear a mask to a protest or at court watching? What will you do when a police officer or a masked ICE agent claims you cannot wear a mask because you’re hiding your identity and you might be a terrorist? Will you comply, or will you disobey, whether legal or not? Will you start coughing, or will you verbally argue the necessity of masking to protect yourself from a contagious virus that can cause young, otherwise healthy people to become disabled and immuno-compromised? Actions speak louder than words.
I’ve now contracted covid-19 three times, the third leaving me with a compromised immune system and GI reactions to some of my favorite foods – which I had been eating during isolating and recovering from the third infection. Wearing good masks that fit your face absolutely works to protect yourself from covid-19, other viruses, and those brutal Austin allergies, too! Maybe you still don’t care about covid-19, and I don’t think I can convince you with words. But the reality is, you cannot mask only for protection from the fascist forces; you must also mask for your protection from airborne viruses. Otherwise, your masking would be atypical. It would signal a divergence in your regular behavior. Our safety and security practices are for all of the time. We always wear our seat belts, not just right before we get into a collision. Normalizing masking in 2025 and onward is a matter of practice, and just doing it. Do it at the grocery store, do it at your work place. Do it inside, and do it outside. Do it to protect yourself, and do it to remind others to do it – because actions speak louder than words. Exert your right to mask, and do it now – before its too late.