16.01.2025

Victims und vectors - Which role does protective clothing play in the pandemic politics of care?

At the end of January, the #Covid-19 pandemic will mark its fifth anniversary. How have issues of #vulnerability and protection been negotiated during the #pandemic? How do we protect others during a pandemic outbreak while still going about our daily lives? What role does protective equipment play in the politics of #care?

The Co-Care project explores these questions, by placing care workers centre-stage. Together with colleagues from LMU and IfE, researchers Katharina Krause and Katharina Wezel examine the invisibility of care workers, such as those in cleaning services and social work. 

The political science based and ethical research within the project highlights the central role of protective equipment—especially face masks—in negotiating reopenings and #lockdowns, shaping political positions, and addressing care. In the journal Critical Studies on Security Katharina Wezel and Katharina Krause argue that during pandemics, questions of protection and vulnerability often remain implicit. Care workers, in particular, faced the dilemma of being essential for crisis work—roles they were required to and often wanted to perform—but frequently lacked timely or sufficient access to protective equipment. 

The increasing frequency of infectious diseases also makes us acutely aware of how deeply interconnected humans, societies, animals, and the environment are. For future #crises, the researchers advocate for care-related issues—reciprocal relationships, context-specific #vulnerabilities, and concepts of good community—to play a significant role in shaping crisis policies.