Inês Mália Sarmento
2020 was one of the best years of my life.
It was the year that I became an activist.
It was the year I started sharing my art with the world.
It was the year I started dating.
It was the year I finally finished high school.
It was the year I started university.
It was the year I came out as disabled and as autistic.
All of this just to name a few.
And, 2020 was also the year the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the entire world.
I always feel weird when I say that the year of the pandemic was a wonderful year for me, because it was also a very painful one for humanity. The impact that the pandemic had on me was powerful, and in some ways even beneficial. For starters, it gave me something to start talking about online. One of the very first things, if not the first thing, that I started advocating about was in correlation with COVID-19. I made several IGTV videos and stories on instagram to inform people about the pandemic and to try to help filter the misinformation that was out there. That was what helped me to start being more comfortable in the public eye– it allowed me to open up my views to critique and constructive criticism.
The pandemic also had a huge impact in terms of accessibility–services that were once impossible for me to reach were finally just a click away. This reflected itself greatly in my school life. The resources I had previously asked for were now available and handed to me, something I still find hard to wrap my mind around. I saw myself conflicted between being grateful and angry at the same time, because although it was amazing that I now had everything at my disposal, I couldn’t help but feel mad at the administration who once told me access was not possible, but now due to the fact that everyone needing digital access, it was all of a sudden available and “free of charge”, the charge here being the judgement and inconvenience.
2020 helped me see the world with a rejuvenated perspective.
2020 helped me see the world with a rejuvenated perspective. It helped me understand even more that the world was ready, it just wasn’t using its resources the right way, meaning, the world could be accessible for everyone if we wanted it to be. That made me feel a bit resentful. But it also gave me the fuel I needed to keep pushing against the grain; now that everyone saw what was possible it would be harder for society to go back without giving the public a good justification for it, right? So I thought. As of the moment I’m writing this, 2nd of June of 2021, I’m already seeing accessibility measures that were previously put in place for everyone, being taken away, because it’s not “needed” anymore. For example, I’m noticing that some of the more efficient forms of communication between students and faculty that emerged during 2020 (digital paperwork, syllabi, etc.) have begun to disappear with more expectations of going back to how it was, in person.
As of the moment I’m writing this, 2nd of June of 2021, I’m already seeing accessibility measures that were previously put in place for everyone, being taken away, because it’s not “needed” anymore.
The pandemic was beneficial in many ways, not just for me, but for the world in general; what I ask now is that people pay close attention to the changes that were made for them to have what they needed and think twice before saying that it now makes sense for those measures to be lifted. We can’t go backwards in terms of accessibility.
The pandemic impacted the world; I just wish it impacted everyone the same way it impacted me, because maybe, just maybe, people would see the beauty of inclusivity.
[Image Description: Self-portrait of Inês that was edited in order to make it seem like a drawing. Inês is a portuguese white woman. She lays on the floor and stares at the camera. She wears a white cloth mask with small pink flowers in it. There are disposable face masks around her, on the floor. -there is a card box wrapped in a white sheet of print paper that reads “EMPATHY”.]
Inês Mália Sarmento
Instagram post:
Quote: “The pandemic impacted the world; I just wish it impacted everyone the same way it impacted me.”
- Inês
[Image Description: Self-portrait of Inês that was edited in order to make it seem like a drawing. Inês is a portuguese white woman. She lays on the floor and stares at the camera. She wears a white cloth mask with small pink flowers in it. There are disposable face masks around her, on the floor. -there is a card box wrapped in a white sheet of print paper that reads “EMPATHY”.]