There are various, often interconnected, reasons why people don't want to wear masks, but there are even more reasons why people should wear them.
Photo by Charles Deluvio via Unsplash
The Conspiracy
Some people refuse to wear masks because they think that masks are unnecessary, harmful to their health, a violation of their rights, and/or emasculating.
Part I: Masks Are Unnecessary
Origins of the Conspiracy
Initially, recommendations and regulations from international organizations, governments, and media outlets regarding mask-wearing were confusing and even contradictory. This generated suspicion and distrust, and a belief/myth that there was no clear purpose for wearing a mask.
The Facts
From February to March 2020, US Surgeon General Jerome Adams, the American Center for Disease Control (CDC), and the World Health Organization (WHO) advised the general public not to wear masks, unless sick.
There were many reasons behind these announcements. Public health authorities did not advise the general public to wear masks because there was a shortage of N95 and surgical masks for health care workers, who were directly exposed to the virus. Some authorities also feared that masks would make the general public feel overly confident that they were safe from infection.
Art by the UN via Unsplash
Moreover, early on there was a lack of scientific evidence over how the virus spread and whether masks could be protective against asymptomatic or even presymptomatic people spreading the virus if they were not coughing or sneezing droplets. Respiratory droplets, which are larger than 5 microns, are produced during exhalation and fall relatively quickly from the air. Transmission occurs when someone is in contact with someone that is sick and spreading droplets. In October 2020, however, researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara found that droplets can travel longer distances in the air.
If people were sick and showing symptoms like coughing, it was advised that they should stay home and isolate, so why were masks needed? Still, George Gao, director of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, told Science Mag as early as March 2020 that "droplets play a very important role...You've got to wear a mask, because when you speak, there are always droplets coming out of your mouth."
The virus can also be transmitted through the exhalation of bodies smaller than droplets known as aerosols by people with and without any symptoms. Aerosols are solid or liquid bodies smaller than 5 microns, produced as well during exhalation, but that stay in the air for a longer period of time. Aerosols are more susceptible to being breathed in. Researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara also found that droplets can evaporate, leaving “tiny virus fragments that join the other aerosolized virus particles.” Researching aerosols is harder because of their size and behaviour in the air.
A mask reduces both the amount of droplets and aerosols emitted. And the better the mask, the less droplets and aerosols are released into the air. Following other recommendations is also crucial, including avoiding touching your face, washing your hands often, maintaining physical distance, and avoiding gatherings of people.
Thinking that "the absence of evidence is evidence of absence" is a scientific or an ad ignorantiam fallacy. Public health messages and authorities also lacked epistemic humility. They failed to acknowledge that there was still a lot to learn about the novel virus and measures would change as more information was discovered. The public also did not fully understand that the science, and therefore the recommendations, were shifting very quickly.
"...the precautionary principle should always be in place if there’s a potential risk. And there’s definitely a potential risk here" Lidia Morawska, aerosol researcher at the Queensland University of Technology, for Wired in July 2020.
The precautionary principle means that "if a threat is sufficiently severe, intervention may be considered legitimate, even where the supporting evidence is incomplete or speculative and the economic costs are high."
Art by the UN via Unsplash
On April 3, 2020, the Centre for Disease Control started recommending "cloth face coverings fashioned from household items or made at home from common materials at low cost can be used as an additional, voluntary public health measure." Additional and voluntary are important words in this statement.
Much later, on June 5, 2020, the WHO updated its guidelines, recommending all citizens to wear cloth masks in areas with community transmissions.
Photo by via Unsplash
Part II: Masks are Harmful
Origins of the Conspiracy
Some people believe masks make people sick or don’t work, and therefore are harmful to their health or not necessary at all.
The Facts
There is increasing research on the effectiveness of different types of masks. But they must be worn properly and accompanied by other precautions, including avoiding touching your face, washing your hands often, maintaining physical distance, and avoiding gatherings of people.
The World Health Organization recognizes that while masks might have some disadvantages, including that they are uncomfortable, can irritate the skin, or worsen acne, these issues do not qualify for exemption from mask mandates. Dr. Albert Rizzo, chief medical officer for the American Lung Association told ABC News in July 2020 that there are many different non-medical masks or even shields you can wear if you can't tolerate medical masks. He even suggests that "wearing a mask 5-10 minutes inside the home [e.g. before going to a store] can help desensitize the person" or get them used to wearing masks.
"Cases of exemption are very few and far between" Dr. Rizzo for ABC News in July 2020.
There are sensible exemptions to wearing a medical or non medical mask, depending on a doctor's assessment and each country's regulations. Usually, these exemptions cover people with serious respiratory or cognitive difficulties and children under 2 years old. Dr. Rizzo also says that if you're exempt because of a compromised respiratory status, you're part of the population at risk and should avoid going out in public as much as possible.
Photo by Jon Tyson via Unsplash
Part III: Masks Mandates are a Violation of Individual Rights
Origins of the Conspiracy
Some people consider mask mandates a violation of their individual rights to freedom. This argument has been raised especially in North America, although anti-mask protests have occurred in other countries, including the United Kingdom, Italy, Australia, Spain, etc.
Conspiracy holders view masks as the government's attempt to control people, making them blindly obedient and compliant. Some have even coopted the pro-abortion phrase "my body, my choice" to protest against masks.
The Facts
Although constitutions around the world vary, as Canada's Supreme Court stated in 2007, "most modern constitutions recognize that rights are not absolute and can be limited if this is necessary to achieve an important objective and if the limit is appropriately tailored, or proportionate."
For example, according to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, our rights are subject to "reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society." Canada's Supreme Court also stated in 1985 that limits can take place during "exceptional conditions such as war, natural disasters or epidemics."
Mask mandates comply with all these reasons. They are taking place during exceptional conditions and for important objectives. They are a public health measure to address the on-going pandemic, decrease the spread of the virus, and protect the population from the infection.
Masks mandates are "also an expression of protecting rights. It’s protecting the rights of vulnerable people, it’s protecting the rights of the elderly who are far more susceptible to this disease, and it’s protecting the rights of anyone engaging in the health care system," Eric Adams, Constitutional Scholar and professor at the University of Alberta's School of Law, for Chat News Today in November 2020.
Despite compelling evidence on their effectiveness, their importance for public health, and that they are not unconstitutional, masks have been politicized in terms of liberal and conservative politics, even by authorities.
"The problem with politicizing a health mandate is that it runs the risk of dehumanizing the issue," Sarah Midkiff for Refinery 29 in June 2020.
Unlike in North America, mask wearing has long been prevalent in many East Asian countries as a way to protect others and yourself from respiratory infections (and pollution). In Wuhan, China, masks were required starting January 2020.
However, in North America, mask wearing by Asian Americans and Asian Canadians has compounded existing anti-Asian discrimination. According to a poll by the Pew Research Center, many Asian Americans say they have experienced discrimination since the start of the pandemic. Trump made the situation even worse by calling it the "Chinese virus."
Photo collage by James Rhee via Vox ATL
Writer's note: it is also important to acknowledge that African-Americans have experienced racial profiling and harassment from the police when following CDC recommendations and wearing masks.
Trump also downplayed the importance of wearing masks and contributed to making them a partisan issue. Here are some of the many examples:
In April 2020, despite the CDC recommending non medical masks for general public use, Trump said, "I don't think I'm going to be doing it (...) Wearing a face mask as I greet presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, queens—I just don't see it."
In May 2020, Trump said that he wore a mask but removed it because he "didn’t want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it" when visiting a Ford Factory in Michigan.
In June 2020, for an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Trump also said that some people wear masks "as a way to signal disapproval of him."
In July 2020, when appearing publicly wearing a mask for the first time, Trump still said that masks "have a time and place," such as "when you’re in a hospital."
Trump changed his view on masks, but has kept his racist rhetoric.
In October 2020, during the first presidential debate, Trump further associated masks with democrats. His advisors and family members in the audience also took their masks off, despite knowing that they had to wear them at all times. According to a poll by the Pew Research Center, more democrats or democratic leaning wear masks compared to republicans or republican leaning.
Other important politicians, including Brazilian president Bolsonaro and Mexican president Lopez Obrador have downplayed the importance of wearing a mask.
Politics and politicians influence people’s ideas and actions.
Part IV: Wearing a Mask is Emasculating
Origins of the Conspiracy
Some men perceive wearing masks as a threat to their masculinity and therefore refuse wearing them.
The Facts
Wearing a mask is a public health measure and should not be related to a gender or sexuality.
The American Psychological Association characterizes hegemonic masculinity as ascribing to adventure, risk, and, violence. Not wearing a mask is therefore perceived as a sign of strength. Moreover, not wearing a mask can be a way to seek acceptance among other men.
"They risk ending up dead on the battlefield they insisted on creating, along with the casualties they take with them," Emily Willingham, science writer, for Scientific American in June 2020.
This discourse aligns with former president Trump's wartime rhetoric. In May 2020, Trump arrived at a mask factory and said that "the people of our country should think of themselves as warriors" because "our country has to open." Economic interests were placed over public health concerns.
To counter the myth about masks being emasculating, Arnold Schwarzenegger, a longstanding figure of hegemonic masculinity in popular culture, became part of a pro mask campaign by California’s government.