Fátima Reyes, Grade 11
UWC Costa Rica
If there’s anything I hope we have learned from the current global health crisis is that we are as strong as our weakest link. We depend on each other’s sense of communal responsibility to minimize the negative impacts of the virus. It seems, however, that this message has either not reached some people or, worse, has been deliberately ignored.
On the Friday night of June 12th, an uncertain number of teenagers and young adults, all suspected to be part of Guatemala’s higher class and elite, were exposed hosting a massive party at a private business’ facilities in the country’s capital city (Jiménez, 2020). This goes against the explicit restrictions put in place by the Government back in mid-March as preventive health measures, including a curfew that goes from 18hrs to 5hrs and the explicit prohibition of unofficial events of “any kind and any number of people” (Pocasangre, 2020). Besides violating these temporary laws, the group, of whom the majority were minors, was caught drinking alcohol beverages and officers found evidence of illegal drug use at the site (Méndez, 2020).
According to follow-up investigations by the authorities, the party was planned out to be clandestine, not sharing information of the date or place until hours before it began. Attendees were warned not to bring mobile devices to “protect the guests’ identities”, and a neon sign reminded guests of the possible arrival of the police. Nonetheless, all these attempts at keeping the massive gathering a secret failed colossally after several of the attendants, presumably under the influence of alcohol and other substances, shared through their social media pictures and live videos of the party (Méndez, 2020). Naturally, authorities immediately arrived at the site. Investigations say that police officers avoided standard procedures and did not prosecute any of the lawbreakers. Another team was then placed in charge of the case and proceeded with the respective investigations of the attendees and hosts.
Due to the instant public nature of the event, many people expressed their profound discontent with the party’s participants and the justice system through social media and other platforms. I myself cannot be excluded from this group. Although I didn’t directly manifest my disappointment through any medium, I too have been greatly affected by the issue. Despite the continuous lack of clarity regarding the guests’ characteristics (who they were, what were they doing, etc.), it is well-known that some, if not the vast majority, of them, were high school students. People my own age - my peers, if you will - whom with, in an alternate universe, I could very well be sharing school hallways or extracurricular clubs. Kids who were raised under the same sky I was and who, altogether, are not that different from myself. These are my co-citizens, and I should be able to trust them.
The O3 Party, named after the business that hosted it, is not an isolated case, not in my city, not in my country, not in the world. As a social species, us humans depend on each other for our survival. Particularly during these troubling times, we should all stand together, shoulder to shoulder against our common enemy. We rely on each other’s actions and common sense to keep ourselves and our loved ones protected and safe. This party may have violated several paths and potentially put dozens of people at risk of being infected, but it also did something else. It united us and reminded us of our common goal, bringing attention once again to our shared responsibility to one another.
I hope that, if anything, this event and our reactions to it remind us all of the importance of selflessness. Whether you are in my same city or across the world, we all play an essential part in this puzzle and must act the part. Because don’t we all deserve to trust our neighbors?
On the Friday night of June 12th, an uncertain number of teenagers and young adults, all suspected to be part of Guatemala’s higher class and elite, were exposed hosting a massive party at a private business’ facilities in the country’s capital city (Jiménez, 2020). This goes against the explicit restrictions put in place by the Government back in mid-March as preventive health measures, including a curfew that goes from 18hrs to 5hrs and the explicit prohibition of unofficial events of “any kind and any number of people” (Pocasangre, 2020). Besides violating these temporary laws, the group, of whom the majority were minors, was caught drinking alcohol beverages and officers found evidence of illegal drug use at the site (Méndez, 2020).
According to follow-up investigations by the authorities, the party was planned out to be clandestine, not sharing information of the date or place until hours before it began. Attendees were warned not to bring mobile devices to “protect the guests’ identities”, and a neon sign reminded guests of the possible arrival of the police. Nonetheless, all these attempts at keeping the massive gathering a secret failed colossally after several of the attendants, presumably under the influence of alcohol and other substances, shared through their social media pictures and live videos of the party (Méndez, 2020). Naturally, authorities immediately arrived at the site. Investigations say that police officers avoided standard procedures and did not prosecute any of the lawbreakers. Another team was then placed in charge of the case and proceeded with the respective investigations of the attendees and hosts.
Due to the instant public nature of the event, many people expressed their profound discontent with the party’s participants and the justice system through social media and other platforms. I myself cannot be excluded from this group. Although I didn’t directly manifest my disappointment through any medium, I too have been greatly affected by the issue. Despite the continuous lack of clarity regarding the guests’ characteristics (who they were, what were they doing, etc.), it is well-known that some, if not the vast majority, of them, were high school students. People my own age - my peers, if you will - whom with, in an alternate universe, I could very well be sharing school hallways or extracurricular clubs. Kids who were raised under the same sky I was and who, altogether, are not that different from myself. These are my co-citizens, and I should be able to trust them.
The O3 Party, named after the business that hosted it, is not an isolated case, not in my city, not in my country, not in the world. As a social species, us humans depend on each other for our survival. Particularly during these troubling times, we should all stand together, shoulder to shoulder against our common enemy. We rely on each other’s actions and common sense to keep ourselves and our loved ones protected and safe. This party may have violated several paths and potentially put dozens of people at risk of being infected, but it also did something else. It united us and reminded us of our common goal, bringing attention once again to our shared responsibility to one another.
I hope that, if anything, this event and our reactions to it remind us all of the importance of selflessness. Whether you are in my same city or across the world, we all play an essential part in this puzzle and must act the part. Because don’t we all deserve to trust our neighbors?
Bibliography:
https://republica.gt/2020/03/16/coronavirus-en-guatemala-prohibiciones-y-excepciones/
https://www.plazapublica.com.gt/content/o3-inmadurez-temeridad-lo-importante-es-la-responsabilidad-legal
https://www.soy502.com/articulo/fiesta-plena-pandemia-ha-indignado-guatemala-32419
https://republica.gt/2020/03/16/coronavirus-en-guatemala-prohibiciones-y-excepciones/
https://www.plazapublica.com.gt/content/o3-inmadurez-temeridad-lo-importante-es-la-responsabilidad-legal
https://www.soy502.com/articulo/fiesta-plena-pandemia-ha-indignado-guatemala-32419
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