YOU KEPT OUR CITY ALIVE
Artist Name: Namgay, Mariam, Yamilex, Valerie, and Soma
Artist Statement
The year that has passed since March 2020 has been a challenging one for everyone. The Covid-19 pandemic has made history and changed the lives of everyone living today. Pre-pandemic, New York City had eight million people living here and millions more commuted to the city every day. The pandemic changed those numbers. In order to stop the spread, New Yorkers had to stay home. But not everyone could work from home. Because New York City has such a huge and dense population, the city was at great risk. Luckily for us, its residents, essential workers held the city together.
All essential workers with their various occupations kept New York City functioning for its millions of residents during the pandemic, and they all deserve to be recognized. This semester we wanted to create a monument that would have an impact. We want our monument, You Kept Our City Alive, to acknowledge how important essential workers are to our city, and highlight how many different roles and jobs became essential once New York City was under lockdown. We created a monument for essential workers, those who helped pull us through the coronavirus crisis.
Our monument is an image on a pedestal. The image is two cupped hands supporting five people, all dressed in different uniforms and wearing masks. The hands cradle these people, a diverse group of essential workers, the same way those workers supported the city through the pandemic. We need to support them in return, and that’s what this monument is meant to remind us.
We wanted our monument to be in Manhattan because the other boroughs are largely residential. Most of the people who had to save lives and work in Manhattan lived in outside boroughs. So we thought those in the outer boroughs must have a good sense of how much we owe our essential workers. Many of those in Manhattan barely changed their lifestyles. We’ve seen tourists, shoppers, and those living in wealthy city neighborhoods going about their days in Manhattan the entire pandemic. These are the people who need to be reminded how vital the essential workers were. There are weekly protests and rallies in Union Square, and it’s an area where tourists like to spend time, so we decided it was the perfect spot.
Everyone was affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, but the impact of the pandemic and its consequences were felt differently depending on its victim’s status. While some people were working to adapt to working from home, ordering food through services like Instacart and teaching our children remotely, some others had no choice except to go out and work in person to keep society functioning.
Covid-19 has claimed the lives of millions all over the world, and New York City with its incredibly high foot traffic was hit badly. The essential healthcare workers putting themselves at risk and working grueling hours to preserve all the lives they could were working hard through the worst of the outbreaks. Those in urgent care facilities and hospitals worked on the front lines keeping sick people alive. If hospitals closed, how would we have been able to get treated? Without Pharmacy’s how will people get their medication?
Many essential workers were largely unappreciated, working class men and women before the pandemic. Despite that, when they were needed, they stepped up and they did more work than anyone else in society. Essential workers who aren’t doctors have jobs that are often seen as low-end, entry level, and unimportant. Yet they sacrificed their time, their effort, their safety, and sometimes their time with friends and family or even their lives. We want the monument to highlight how many kinds of workers became essential once people couldn’t safely leave their homes. The different group of essential workers who are trying their best by providing services to the public to keep them safe in their homes. These people are helping hold our economy together, too. We want our monument to honor those Covid-19 pandemic essential workers who are forgotten about along with those working in hospitals.
Without sanitation workers continuing their work, New York’s City’s streets would be a disaster and everyone would be at much higher risk. Firefighters and police officers had to continue working because the pandemic didn’t stop the world from being hazardous. Restaurant and grocery store employees had to put in twice the work to make sure they were not only adhering to food safety standards, but also additional COVID-19 safety standards. Delivery workers, who are often looked down on, became some of the most important members of society. Without delivery workers how would those who physically couldn’t leave their home go out and get what they need?
Our society is healing. Thanks to the joint efforts of all these workers and the people in our community who have joined hands to defeat the virus, society is returning to normalcy. Essential workers continue to be in service for the people in need.
New York City is still in need of these brave people. We want this monument to highlight this moment in history when they were especially needed. They deserve to be recognized and appreciated by every individual in our community, and we should commemorate them while they are well and alive with us. The memorial will remain where it is, and it will serve as a reminder for our future generations to let them know about the importance of these essential workers even if it is just a small job of delivering food to a quarantining apartment. All essential workers kept New York City functioning for its millions of residents during the pandemic, and they all deserve to be recognized. We understand that all the essential workers put their lives in danger to help us, so we must honor them, our heroes. Creating a monument that represents these everyday heroes is the best way to show them our gratitude and respect. Our courageous essential workers deserve all our respect, love, and support.
