Ha. "Queer" not "queen", but, for some folks, may be same diff. :)
J On Tue, Jan 3, 2023, 7:31 PM Julian Blechner <[email protected]> wrote: > Didn't we just have an email thread that listed out literally dozens of > dances with n95 mask policies and zero outbreaks, while we see spread of > covid at other dances? > > As Mac wrote, numbers are going up. They haven't actually gone down since > April. > > It's working, and, in New England, we're seeing _more_ younger dancers. > (That is more likely due to gender free calling and outward acceptance of > queen dancers, which seems like another topic.) > > But tossing that all aside, there's one big reason to keep masking: > Contra with n95 masks is one of the only reasonably safe social outlet in > this "new normal". Contra dancers with medical conditions - or have > immediate family - is about 1 in 6 according to polling. Take away masked > contra, and we are relegated back to second-class citizen status. > > Instead, I suggest that there's _plenty_ of mask-optional dances out > there. Choice is available. There's no need to take away dancing for 1 in 6 > of us. > > Julian > > On Tue, Jan 3, 2023, 7:02 PM Don Veino via Organizers < > [email protected]> wrote: > >> I'm going to avoid the public health data, etc. aspect and approach this >> in a more practical way... >> >> Under the business maxim that it's far cheaper/ easier to keep an >> existing customer than obtain a new one, my simplified perspective is: what >> does your community want? >> >> I asked mine back around April. The local BIDA group did so in a wider >> way more recently. In both cases the answer was effectively "not yet". >> Sure, some were ready to remove all measures. Others, parts. But the >> significant majority wanted the existing measures to continue. >> >> One might argue that's not surprising given the folks most likely to >> reply were those willing to attend under the existing circumstances. But >> those are the folks we *have* and there's great difficulty accurately >> determining what would happen under a different scheme (provided one was >> inclined to try it) - will sufficient of those that haven't been attending >> be willing to swerve sharply away from their substitute activities to make >> up for the known entities that will shy away due to the change? >> >> I'm not ready to take that leap with the expenses of my dance yet. >> >> -Don >> >> P.S.: this applies to both performers and dancers - when I asked, the >> callers were particularly concerned about retaining the existing measures >> and the musicians slightly less so. >> >> >> On Tue, Jan 3, 2023, 6:20 PM Joe Harrington via Organizers < >> [email protected]> wrote: >> >>> While I'm happy to comply with any COVID policy in order to dance, and I >>> choose to wear a mask at bigger events, I question whether the contra >>> communities' strict policies are doing us much good, either in protecting >>> us medically or in getting dances going again. Consider: >>> >>> 1. Even in the most restricted states (New England, etc.), nearly >>> everyone is maskless nearly all the time in normal life, including most >>> dancers. People eat in very crowded restaurants, ride public >>> transportation, fly on airplanes, sit in airports, go shopping, work, >>> attend school, do sports, go to the gym, sing, interact with friends and >>> family members who have been out in the community maskless, etc., mostly >>> without masks. >>> >>> 2. As a result of #1, covid is spreading quite effectively in our >>> communities, even if a few groups are still masking. >>> >>> 3. As a result of #2, protocols at a dance cannot much alter community >>> spread rates, even if the dance spread rate were zero. >>> >>> But, this isn't concerning most people because: >>> >>> 4. Vaccines do keep nearly every infected person out of the hospital and >>> reduce long covid. >>> >>> 5. For those going to the hospital or suspected to be at risk, >>> monoclonal and other treatments are quite effective. >>> >>> 6. As a result, the mortality of covid-19 is now down to three times >>> that of a bad flu season, which is way down from the mass carnage of 2020. >>> >>> It is questionable what anything but masking is doing for us: >>> >>> 7. Unmasked contra dancing, even with a vaccine and negative test, does >>> lead to rapid covid spread. Several camps in summer 2022 had 50+ infected >>> dancers, even though they were all vaccinated and all had tested negative >>> on arrival. The incubation period and false-negative rate are enough to >>> allow one or two cases through, and the vaccine no longer keeps you from >>> getting it, it just dramatically reduces severity. >>> >>> Since: >>> >>> 8. Even in the most conservative, vaccine-averse Southern communities, >>> 90+% of contra dancers at big events say they are vaccinated (per survey at >>> Summer Contradancers Delight Holiday in Tennessee). >>> >>> 9. Choosing to wear a mask remains an option for everyone, and is quite >>> effective at keeping the wearer healthy, though it is not foolproof (but >>> neither is life). >>> >>> And: >>> >>> 10. People have options for recreational and social activities, and many >>> are choosing those with fewer or no restrictions, especially young people >>> who don't have much personal risk from covid. >>> >>> 11. Essentially all other organized dance communities besides >>> contra/English/etc. are dancing without restrictions on a national >>> level, and have been since early 2022: Square, swing, blues, ballroom, >>> salsa, tango, etc. >>> >>> It may therefore be time for communities to reconsider absolute >>> restrictions, and instead encourage vaccination and mask-wearing as >>> effective ways to stop the spread of diseases like covid, but also the flu, >>> RSV, and other pathogens. >>> >>> People can still (and I do) choose to wear masks if they are concerned >>> about getting covid. The idea of reducing spread at dances would be a good >>> one if the rest of society were playing along. But, it isn't. When I was a >>> teen, I boycotted China. China didn't change. >>> >>> Communities with a large component of at-risk dancers who mask in >>> general life and who are vaccinated may wish to continue requiring >>> vax+mask. In areas with many dancers, two dances, one requiring masks and >>> one mask-optional, may make the most sense. >>> >>> I am especially concerned at the reduced percentage of younger dancers I >>> have seen at recent events. While it seemed, prepandemic, that there was a >>> nascent resurgence in the popularity of contra among the current >>> twentysomethings, few of the young dancers I used to see are showing up to >>> dances post-covid. When I go to swing and blues, there are lots of younger >>> dancers. I am certain that if we required masks at my college contra >>> dance, students would just go to ballroom, salsa, or swing. >>> >>> If we want to get contra going again, and especially if we want to >>> attract many new younger dancers, who are not worried that getting covid >>> represents a big risk to them and who have plenty of unrestricted options >>> in recreational activities, perhaps it's time not to ask, "does this policy >>> stop covid from transmitting at our dance," but rather, "does this policy >>> significantly lower the total covid risk our dancers face?" >>> >>> I argue that strict policies no longer do that, given our behavior in >>> society. Nonetheless, those of us who are concerned can still choose to >>> reduce our own risk substantially by being vaccinated and wearing a >>> well-fitting KN95 or better mask whenever we are in a crowd, including at >>> dances, without requiring it of others. I do. >>> >>> Thanks, >>> >>> --jh-- >>> Joe Harrington >>> Organizer, Greater Orlando Contra Dance >>> Faculty Advisor, Contra Knights, the UCF contra dancing club >>> contraknights.org >>> FB, Ig: Contra Knights >>> [email protected] >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Organizers mailing list -- [email protected] >>> To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >>> >> _______________________________________________ >> Organizers mailing list -- [email protected] >> To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >> >
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