Why you should wear a mask in public
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I’ll be wearing this home made mask in public spaces until the pandemic is over. It’s not just about protecting myself. It’s mainly about Ubuntu and protecting my fellow South Africans.
I’ll be wearing a mask in public spaces until the pandemic is over. I wore this orange one to the grocery store this weekend. It took me 3 mins to make from an old T-shirt.
Am I feeling sick? No, but this is a sneaky virus. Many people infect others in the few days before they show any symptoms. Masks aren't just about protecting you. They're mainly about protecting those around you.
Some of you are thinking: “Didn’t the WHO say masks don't help?” Indeed, but they meant "They don’t guarantee 100% protection."
Scientific studies conclude that masks sewn from cotton T-shirts are ~70% effective, which reduces the viral coefficient enough to stop this plague.
If everyone wears a mask, you have two effective layers between every infected respiratory droplet and each potential new host!
And you can easily disinfect your mask. Just bake it for 30 mins at 70°C in an oven.
We are really talking about interpersonal solidarity. In the words of Barack Obama:
“There is a word in South Africa – Ubuntu – a word that captures Mandela’s greatest gift: his recognition that we are all bound together in ways that are invisible to the eye; that there is a oneness to humanity; that we achieve ourselves by sharing ourselves with others, and caring for those around us.
Am I feeling sick? No, but this is a sneaky virus. Many people infect others in the few days before they show any symptoms. Masks aren't just about protecting you. They're mainly about protecting those around you.
Some of you are thinking: “Didn’t the WHO say masks don't help?” Indeed, but they meant "They don’t guarantee 100% protection."
Scientific studies conclude that masks sewn from cotton T-shirts are ~70% effective, which reduces the viral coefficient enough to stop this plague.
If everyone wears a mask, you have two effective layers between every infected respiratory droplet and each potential new host!
And you can easily disinfect your mask. Just bake it for 30 mins at 70°C in an oven.
We are really talking about interpersonal solidarity. In the words of Barack Obama:
“There is a word in South Africa – Ubuntu – a word that captures Mandela’s greatest gift: his recognition that we are all bound together in ways that are invisible to the eye; that there is a oneness to humanity; that we achieve ourselves by sharing ourselves with others, and caring for those around us.