Picture this: it’s summer 2020. Your Instagram feed is filled with infographics about social justice and social distancing. Side note—cognitive dissonance is the discomfort associated with a disconnect between your values and actions. Its effects are often mitigated by a change in values (that’s way easier than practicing self-control and actually changing your actions). Okay, now fast forward to 2021—with activism burnout and a change in social norms (remember how taboo partying used to be?)—it’s becoming harder to stay in, and hundreds of social media SJWs are realizing their activism can no longer extend beyond the internet. Suddenly, they are all coming up with reasons that going out is actually okay, even though COVID’s death toll has continued to surge. Also, for BLM supporters (that should be everyone), COVID did not, in fact, stop killing black people at a disproportionately high rate with the onset of the new year. The proportion of Instagram infographics is now decreasingly COVID related and liberal college students’ snapchat stories are being neglected (but don’t worry, going out selfies can still make the private story). If you’re getting angry as you read this, please be assured my cynicism comes from a good place; I simply don’t want you to die. Partying is too avoidable to ever be the reason for the spread of a deadly virus. Let me know if I am mistaken, but I truly believe that every single person is capable of not going out for a few more months. Don’t take my tone at face value, I am also a college student and I really do sympathize. The “best years of our lives” are being stripped away from us and this pandemic’s supposed end date seems to be infinitely pushed back. It’s frustrating. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Effective vaccines are being rapidly distributed and things are looking up. I guarantee that in twenty years you will regret being the reason for someone’s grandma’s death much more than missing a couple of frat parties, which are mostly gross anyway. Don’t take that risk. For now, protect yourself and the people around you by staying in and after the pandemic, go on a bender to make up for the lost time (kidding, probably don’t do that).
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Emory chapter.