“Six Feet of Sunshine” vs. Six Feet Apart

Published 4 years ago -


Timothy Forde, Staff Writer

On September 6th, 2020, Kerri Walsh Jennings posted on Instagram.

 

Her lengthy post began with her apologizing ahead of time for how her “intention is NEVER to hurt or disrespect.”  However, it seemed that she was well aware that the controversial statement she was going to make was indeed hurtful, disrespectful, and, quite frankly, foolish.

 

Jennings continued by claiming that her reasoning for posting was inspired by a quote she had come across just days before in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

 

It read:

 

“THIS HAS NOT BEEN ENFORCED, IT’S BEEN CONSENTED TO.”

 

This quote spurred Jennings to present her stance on COVID-19, her stance being that she is against mask mandates.

 

I found this to be incredibly frustrating.

 

Jennings, as an Olympic athlete in good physical condition, has now chosen to diminish the severity of the virus.

 

From a young age, I looked up to Kerri Walsh Jennings.  I remember her as the very first professional volleyball player I had ever seen play.  As a five-time Olympian, Jennings currently stands as the most decorated beach volleyball player in Olympic history, with three gold medals and one bronze.  Jennings is a role model for athletes everywhere, especially volleyball players. As a volleyball player myself, I was shocked to read this statement when Jennings first posted it.  It was one of the most ridiculous and contradictory declarations I have ever read.

 

Like many individuals in the United States, Jennings has chosen to make the coronavirus a political issue, rather than prioritizing the well-being of the nation and viewing it as a public health crisis.

 

She claims that the quote above “woke [her]up” and how it has sent her into a frenzy of “obsessing on the matter of how [she] can mindfully & compassionately stand up for [her] rights & for the freedoms our constitution has granted us all WITHOUT being reckless or putting anyone else in danger.”

 

Therefore, in an act of what she sees as bravery and courage, Jennings decided that the best thing she could do to make sure that everybody else knows that she knows her rights was to “NOT” wear a mask to a grocery store.

 

Not only do I find this to be idiotic behavior, but it makes me wonder how she thinks that such a small level of sacrifice (wearing a mask) can be seen as unconstitutional.  Just because something that would diminish the rates of COVID-19 in the United States isn’t mandated does not mean you shouldn’t follow it.

 

Regardless of what your political affiliation is, nobody enjoys wearing a mask.  It’s just something that many individuals feel is essential in order to prevent the spread of this deadly and highly infectious virus.

 

To try and make things appear better, Jennings concluded her statement by saying she is one to “cherish life”  and that she “would never downplay the impact of a single loss of life.”  However, by not wearing a mask in order to exercise her personal freedoms, she is doing just that.  Not only do her actions demonstrate why we have lost so many lives in this country, but there is also a chance that if she was carrying the virus during her grocery store visit that she put the lives of everyone there at risk.

 

If Kerri Walsh Jennings was attending Assumption University during these strange and scary times, she would have been kicked off of campus for her actions.

 

The woman is nicknamed “Six Feet of Sunshine,” so why is it so difficult for her to understand how important it is to keep six feet apart from others?

 

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