• The Borough We Became: Queens Residents On Life During COVID-19

  • By: Queens Memory
  • Podcast

The Borough We Became: Queens Residents On Life During COVID-19 By cover art

The Borough We Became: Queens Residents On Life During COVID-19

By: Queens Memory
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  • Summary

  • On Thursday, April 9th, 2020 the Queens Memory Project launched a COVID-19 documentation project in Queens, New York. The project, found at https://queenslib.org/covid, has the active support of a broad coalition of cultural organizations and citizen historians organized to document this extraordinary moment in Queens history. These are the stories shared by Queens residents who are living, working, learning, and helping one another during this unprecedented time.
    Queens Public Library 2020
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Episodes
  • Season Trailer: The Borough We Became: Queens Residents On Life During COVID-19

    Season Trailer: The Borough We Became: Queens Residents On Life During COVID-19
    May 25 2020

    In the spring of 2020, New York City was the center of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States and Queens had the highest numbers of diagnosed cases and hospitalizations. Many Queens residents were living and work­ing on the front lines, providing essential services and supporting family and community members. 

    These personal stories were not well documented by the media as news of the pandemic moved at a stunning pace. Without real-time documentation, memories can fade and facts can be misremembered, making it difficult to reconstruct lived experience. After March 20th, as the city was urged to stay at home, we collected first-person accounts from the communities affected in the most acute ways. 

    This season of the Queens Memory Podcast features first-person accounts from our community as we got through this historic pandemic together.
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    1 min
  • Episode 1: Adjustment

    Episode 1: Adjustment
    Aug 4 2020
    The  Queens Memory Project brings you the premiere of season two of the  Queens Memory Podcast.  This season we have collected documented experiences of Queens residents during the COVID-19 Pandemic.  Episode one features testimonies of two residents who live near hospitals and the blaring realities they face, as well as others who struggle to find a sense of normalcy, who feel as though they have lost time, and those who have lost loved ones to the virus.   On March 20, 2020, at 11 am,  Governor Cuomo delivered a press briefing on New York’s response to COVID-19. It was in this briefing that the governor announced an executive stay-at-home order, urging residents to isolate to flatten the curve of coronavirus infections in New York. In the following weeks and months, Queens residents still grapple with how isolation and COVID-19 have impacted their lives. Malcolm Boyd and Elizabeth O’Brien share their stories of living near hospitals in Queens, including Elmhurst Hospital, which Boyd describes as a COVID ‘hotspot.’ Queens, and  Elmhurst Hospital in particular, has in fact had the  highest infection rates in the city,  and remains toward the  top of the list for most confirmed cases and deaths in the United States. O’Brien laments over the state of health in Queens, specifically for MTA workers and essential grocery staff, noting that as of her recording on April 20th, an estimated 7,000 have died of COVID-19. At the time, testing was not administered widely, so the exact number of COVID related deaths is disputed. Further in the episode, recent high school graduate Kafilat Abdul of South Jamaica speaks of missing out on her graduation ceremony and celebrations, and Justin Kwiatowski of Queens Village, an essential worker, talks of maintaining a routine, adhering to safety procedures, and finding the positives in life. On April 2nd, Mayor de Blasio said in his daily press briefing: “This is a transformative moment for the state, for the country. I believe that. I also believe this is a moment when you see what people are made of.” Meanwhile, Queens residents continue to reel from their experiences with COVID-19. Ann Hepperman, of Jackson Heights, contracted the virus in March, and shares her experience of being in total quarantine, accessing tele-health, and what it was like to re-enter the world once she had recovered.  Hepperman speaks of suffering a panic attack at a grocery store and the psychological trauma she has faced and many others are likely to suffer from. Hendal Leiva lost a friend to COVID-19, and talks about the suddenness of his friend’s death and how it has impacted him.  Resources are available to help those struggling with stress, anxiety, and loss related to COVID-19. For helping yourself manage anxiety see Health Line’s tips, for those with children, visit Child Mind, and if you have suffered a loss, New York Presbyterian offers advice. These are just a few of the vast number of online resources available -- for immediate help, please consider calling a 24/7 helpline.  Referenced at the end of the show is a tribute to first responders by the Thunderbirds and Blue Angels, which can be seen here. It’s not too late to submit your story to the Queens Memory Project. Follow this link to submit an audio recording, text, video, or photos that you feel documents your experience of COVID-19.
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    18 mins
  • Bonus Episode: Teen Voices in the Pandemic

    Bonus Episode: Teen Voices in the Pandemic
    May 18 2021

    This episode of the Queens Memory Project Podcast was conceived and produced by the Queens Public Library Teen Advisory Board.  The Queens Public Library Teen Advisory Board is a yearlong program were members take the lead in creating and implementing a project that helps their peers and community.  This year’s TAB decided to work on a podcast to interview the voices they felt have been left out of the conversations around Covid-19.  After much discussion, TAB members decided to highlight the voices of their peers and their experiences with quarantine and distance learning.  After spending the first half of the school year learning the basics of podcasting, members worked together to write the interview questions and were responsible for interviewing, producing, and hosting the episode.  Once they learned the basics of creating a podcast episode, the TAB members set out to interview people across generations and life experiences to ask the question “How are you doing?”  Answers varied widely and touched upon the topics of virtual school, the disruption of daily routines, new skills learned during lockdown, and social media use. Interviewees often chose to highlight the positives of their experiences in quarantine. 

     
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    23 mins
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