We here at Drag City love to give our artists a platform from which their voice can be heard (it's actually our literal job!), so for these isolated times, we've asked them if there's anything they wanna share, shout about, rave up, or simply give while we're all holed up in our bunkers. One of the very first responders was none other than premier voice of the people, Laetitia Sadier! Today she shares an essay ruminating on healthcare, government leadership, and humanity (oh my!), recently written from home in London, as well as an accompanying playlist, Miraculous Irruption of An Absolute Beginning, for all to enjoy alongside (at Laetitia's request, play on SHUFFLE). To boot, today we offer a discount on the entire Laetitia Sadierand Monade catalogs for the next 24 hours for anyone so inclined and with the means. Take it away, Laetitia!

STARHUMAN, I RECOGNIZE NOTHING

Only recently -march 24th- did our Prime Minister Boris Johnson deliver a very vehement speech telling us, the people, should STAY AT HOME. A chunk of the population were already steering clear of public life and places, though I saw many making a strong reappearance at the Oval farmers market on Saturday (wow, those queues !)

Deliberate confinement is still a fairly new affair for us in the UK and we all have yet to adjust to the fact.
Ah, today, the police are given new powers to fine people who dare take a walk in the park...

However we can already foresee the many questions it raises, the many worries and also, all the hopes this unprecedented collective quarantine may entail.

Deep down we know that we couldn’t go on this destructive path, running like crazy hamsters on the ever intensifying treadmill capitalism slipped under our feet long long ago.

So the virus can be seen as the one who applies the breaks on the ferocious machine we didn’t know how to stop.
Are the governments going to deploy in time all the necessary means to look after its people?

Beyond the illness itself and the lack of beds and equipment in hospitals -due to ongoing austerity measures meaning a massive reduction in fundings allocated to health care- it is absolutely distressing to see that lives are being crushed and that as always it is the most vulnerable people who are made to pick up the bill. A women who was being interviewed on France Culture radio, Les Pieds Sur Terre program (I’m so grateful this radio station exists!) was describing her hopeless living conditions and shyly admitted that being swept away by the coronavirus would come as some kind of relief…

French president Macron, responsible for huge cuts in hospital funding last year, seems to have found a piece of his long lost heart and amongst other measures declared that people wouldn’t have to pay their rent during the crisis (unsurprisingly, reports are already coming in of the impossibility to access this scheme for most people).
UK Prime minister Bojo muttered something about taking care of the weakest and I even heard reports of Trump mentioning the deployment of the Universal Credit, oh really? Let’s see some real action Messrs!!!

The real plight lies here fundamentally : the sanitary crisis is the result of decades of budget cuts in the public sphere, notably in healthcare. The powers that be, use strategies to make us feel guilty about the current state of affairs, and make us stay at home. If there were enough beds in hospitals, with all the necessary equipment -we knew of the possibility of a pandemic- if everyone were given testing kits, adequate instructions, masks -who do work actually in preventing the spread of the disease- and gloves to protect ourselves and two weeks paid off work to recover from the flu, we wouldn’t have to confine at home. All this is the result of the ongoing imposition of an economic and ideological model that prioritises the interests of financial lobbies and banks over the rights of citizens to have access to a decent public health care (and public life!).

The years of imposed austerity are now revealed and totally failing the public sphere, the people. What other than catastrophes do we expect if public life is defunded year after year?

It is clear that the crisis is revealing too many people are leading precarious lives; the focus is on them and how society can be of support. But all will be done so that we don’t call the capitalist model (or neoliberal, call it what you will) into question.
From the point of view of the dominant class it is unacceptable and must be avoided at all cost.

The end of this civilisation is hastened in. Our margin for manoeuvring out of this pickle is pretty narrow.
As things stand we might not make it out alive and in less than 200 years it is game over for humanity (well, viruses will survive).

I doubt that even after this crisis has cleared, there will be a political will to reform the system to best work in the interest of the general well-being, which includes all living forms occupying this planet, and beyond.

As I enter the period of confinement I am hopeful that we are going to reflect on OUR power as a people to reorganise society . Not let our collective power be grabbed by the same old class, that will seek to control us even further through whatever means and technology they have.

At this stage it implies gaining a higher consciousness to revive the principles of balance and harmony -as opposed to duality and division that capitalism thrives on- ideas of how to bring about general well being that won’t be ego based, as well as rebuilding the spirit of community, solidarity, connection between people and their environment.
Being in service of supporting life on earth as opposed to exploiting the fuck out of it.

The streets of London have never been so deserted and quiet. The air is more breathable by the day. Spring is here and the earth already regenerating. Time to prepare for the next step in human evolution. We hope.