Abstract
The unprecedented health and economic crisis has demonstrated the dire vulnerability of all low-wage and gig workers in the United States. The experience of Black workers in the American South is not the exception to this rule. Many of these workers often cannot easily access public assistance and often are not likely to find social services without experiencing months without a livable wage. When they receive few health benefits with their labor and little consideration for their humanity, these gig workers have few places to turn for help, leaving them in a far worse predicament in 2021 than any other time in recent memory. Using the teachings of Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell, as opposed to the traditional Freudian approach to thinking about our life’s journey, public health advocates can employ inner work strategies to help these workers repair their brokenness and avoid the predicted mental health crisis developing. on the margins of this global pandemic. “Disruption” happens when a life event throws one into chaos, as described by Jordan Peterson in Reality and the Sacred. In this paper I demonstrate how the lessons of “The Hero’s Journey” can be applied as a supporting system by public health service providers to prevent further crisis of physical, mental, and psychological health.
Presenters
Chauncey McGlatherySexual Justice Coordinator, Criminal Justice Reform, SERO Project, Alabama, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2022 Special Focus—Government and Society Collaborations: Responding to Pandemics
KEYWORDS
Pandemic, Gig Workers, Medical Coverage, Great Resignation, Mental Health Strategies
