Just as it seemed like the United States and much of the world was on a path to normalcy, a new COVID-19 variant is upending plans for a normal festive season.
“It’s like experiencing deja vu or being stuck in a Groundhog Day loop,” Sabrina Campbell, a Jamaican-born healthcare worker in Palm Beach County, told Caribbean National Weekly.
For Caribbean nationals and those in the diaspora, the Christmas season is a time to travel, visit the homes of friends and family, massive Christmas dinners and church services. Many people had already made plans to do the aforementioned before the Omicron variant took hold of the United States and became the dominant version of the virus.
According to federal officials, the new variant accounted for 73 percent of all new COVID-19 cases within the last week. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also estimated that over 1 million new cases will be detected this week.
As a result of the spread of the variant, which is more transmittable than others, many cities and states are adjusting their holiday plans.
Los Angels, London and Paris all called off their New Year’s Eve celebrations this week due to the spread of the virus. In New York City, which has seen a spike in infections over the last two weeks, Mayor Bill de Blasio is expected to announce changes to the city’s famous New Year’s Eve bash in Times Square. In Boston, a sweeping vaccine policy was announced for businesses and in Miami-Dade, county officials expanded COVID testing and reinstated its mask mandate for county-owned buildings.
Campbell said it is frustrating to be experiencing the same thing over and over.
“This happened last year. In 2020, it was more disastrous of course. With the vaccinations and everything, you’d think that we would be over this, but we’re not. We’ve been experiencing the same thing over and over for two years now,” she lamented.
Campbell said as it was in 2020, she and her coworkers are anxious for the next wave of COVID-19 in the United States.
President Joe Biden attempted to quell panic over the variant by announcing the purchase of a half-billion, at-home rapid COVID-19 tests and the mobilization of 1,000 military medical personnel to overburdened hospitals. Biden said Americans will be able to request the free-at-home COVID-19 tests be mailed to their homes by accessing an online website.
“I know you’re tired. I know you’re frustrated. We all want this to be over but we’re still in it. And this is a critical moment. But we also have more tools than we’ve ever had before,” Biden said in his remarks from the White House.
While acknowledging the concerns of the virus and the new variant, Biden said that Americans have no reason to panic and that the country had made progress in its fight against COVID-19.
“This is not March of 2020. Two hundred million people are fully vaccinated. We’re prepared. We know more. We just have to stay focused.”
But it’s not just the U.S. that is experiencing COVID-19 Christmas jitters. Germany, Portugal, Netherlands, France, Israel and the United Kingdom are among the countries globally that have imposed new COVID-19 restrictions within the last month. And across the Caribbean, officials are urging caution and putting restrictions in place to prevent another crisis.
The Omicron variant has been detected in several islands, including Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. Trinidad has imposed a vaccine mandate for government workers, while the governments of Antigua and Guyana have warned against fetes and parties. Jamaica too has also warned residents that no party permits will be issued over the holidays. But the warnings have not swayed those experiencing COVID-19 fatigue. For many Jamaican residents, it will be a normal pre-COVID Christmas this year.
“This is the first Christmas since 2019 where we will be allowed to be out after midnight. I’m vaccinated and plan to enjoy it to the fullest. They say we should learn to live with COVID-19 so that’s what I’m doing,” Shaquille, a Jamaican event promoter, told Caribbean National Weekly.
Mark Moore, another event promoter, sees this year as “the time to make up for all that has been lost in 2020”. His Christmas plans will include dinner with several relatives from the diaspora for the first time since 2019.
