Not to be a dick, but it kind of sounds like you all need to refine your approach to talking to people about masking and figure out how to develop a lot more patience because pushing people to change is really hard.
We have had 6 years and many, many events to refine and tailor our approach. I can tell you with confidence there is no approach that works better than any of the others. If there was something, anything that worked, we would know and would be doing it by now. We’ve tried being militant, we’ve tried being patient, we’ve tried “meeting people where they are,” and all of this has had the same efficacy and staying power: zero. We provide everything along with guidance, and we are ignored while business goes on as usual. We give the means to independently assess and handle risk to each individual or group, and we are ignored while business goes on as usual. I am all ears for any actual experience you may have with this!
Health interventions are tough, and they kinda go on forever. I wonder if this kind of work could be best approached as a community health project, like a community clinic type thing. Rather than focusing on getting people to adopt covid protocols, focus on getting people involved in addressing the healthcare needs of marginalized and disabled people in the community. That way you’re pulling people into a context where they’re asking for training to be able to safely assist their neighbors and struggling together to improve health outcomes in the community. This might not be exactly the focus you’re looking for, but I think there’s a broader issue that forms the backdrop of the general apathy towards covid safety. I bet there are multiple mutual aid groups in your area who would be open to expanding their services to include basic health training and care.
We have had 6 years and many, many events to refine and tailor our approach. I can tell you with confidence there is no approach that works better than any of the others. If there was something, anything that worked, we would know and would be doing it by now. We’ve tried being militant, we’ve tried being patient, we’ve tried “meeting people where they are,” and all of this has had the same efficacy and staying power: zero. We provide everything along with guidance, and we are ignored while business goes on as usual. We give the means to independently assess and handle risk to each individual or group, and we are ignored while business goes on as usual. I am all ears for any actual experience you may have with this!
Health interventions are tough, and they kinda go on forever. I wonder if this kind of work could be best approached as a community health project, like a community clinic type thing. Rather than focusing on getting people to adopt covid protocols, focus on getting people involved in addressing the healthcare needs of marginalized and disabled people in the community. That way you’re pulling people into a context where they’re asking for training to be able to safely assist their neighbors and struggling together to improve health outcomes in the community. This might not be exactly the focus you’re looking for, but I think there’s a broader issue that forms the backdrop of the general apathy towards covid safety. I bet there are multiple mutual aid groups in your area who would be open to expanding their services to include basic health training and care.