Fear and Inequality at the Onset of Crises

Abstract

Abstract The conclusion draws parallels between social responses to fear of violence and fear of contagion at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. The first cases of Covid-19 in Monterrey were detected within San Pedro, yet the defended city took the strictest measures to seclude itself from the rest of the metropolis. The local government of San Pedro established police-enforced “security filters” at its borders, which media and local critics were quick to criticize as class and racial filters. As of 2023, most urban residents in Mexico do not feel safe. A national survey revealed, however, that San Pedro is now the city where residents report feeling the safest in Mexico. To illustrate this book’s approach to fear at the onset of crises in other contexts, the chapter closes with examples of how fear relocated, rescheduled, and regrouped people and practices in New York City at the onset of the pandemic.