Denver, CO, USA. April 19, 2020. Protesters gathered at the Colorado State Capitol to oppose the state's stay-at-home order and other social distancing restrictions because of the coronavirus. By Jim Lambert
The rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine distribution has been very encouraging and hopeful, but the next several months remain challenging. What determined the pandemic's scope and severity was not the microbe but the mental health of the president, and, by extension, of his followers. Instead of protecting the population, the Trump administration engaged in campaigns of disinformation, starting with hydroxychloroquine, how masks are dangerous, and how Covid-19 itself is a conspiracy.
Extracting individuals from a cult or an abusive relationship can be difficult because it is not a matter of presenting facts or appealing to logic. Cult members and victims of abuse are emotionally "hooked" into the relationship, unable to see what may be obvious to outsiders about the harm that is being done to them. After a while, the magnitude of the deception conspires with their own psychological protections against pain and disappointment, which cause them to avoid seeing the truth.
It is much easier to believe that the person one has pledged undying devotion to is worthy of that loyalty, than to face the fact that one has been duped. Psychological abuse is powerful, and perhaps the most destructive form of abuse, as it takes over one's agency and critical faculties.
For how to handle Trump followers, please read my "Profile of a Nation," or consult us at dangerouscase.org and at bandylee.com (Dr. Lee does not take payment for her books or any other services related to this topic).