Performative Compliance…whaaat?
I’m going to coin a new phrase here. At least I have not come across it elsewhere: Performative Compliance.
This refers to the actions of states, cities, businesses, schools in the face of the persistent threat of COVID-19. I’ve been thinking about this since I temporarily left my Eugene Bubble and ventured out into one of those states that is not, to put it mildly, part of the “blue sweep” many of us are hoping (and working) for 13 days from now.
I think there may be 3 levels of compliance to those protocols SHOWN and PROVEN to mitigate the spread of the virus.
First is true adherence. Every public indoor place has a “no admittance without a mask” sign prominently displayed. And THERE IS NO ADMITTANCE WITHOUT A MASK. As in, enforced. Public indoor places have FLOOR MARKINGS to help people stay at least 6 feet apart from each other. Other spaces are reconfigured to make this possible. GLOVES and hand sanitizer are everywhere. In restaurants (with indoor or outdoor seating), there are no ketchup bottles, salt and pepper shakers on the table, nothing that would be touched by many people. And much more.
The second is what I have discovered in my out-of-the-bubble experience: Performative Adherence. I’ll just give this one example. On one end of a table is an ice/ water dispensing machine operated by 2 touch buttons. Two feet away, on the other end of this table, taped to the table itself (so not at eye level) is a sign that says you should wipe down high-touch surfaces. The wipes are not there. The wipes are in an unmarked plastic container on a shelf located elsewhere. Did anyone who used the ice machine see the sign, find the wipes and obey? I stood to the side and watched 4 people. No one saw the sign. Each person touched the button the previous person had touched.
Did the facility comply to the “wipe surfaces” mandate? You be the judge.
The third level, which I have not experienced but, like all of you, have read about in social media, or seen in videos featuring parades of the maskless marching through big box stores, is no compliance at all. These are folks who call COVID the “Wu-Han virus” and believe the ongoing pandemic is mostly a figment of the Left’s imagination. Their interpretation of our President’s recent bout of illness is: See, it’s not that dangerous. Or: What a dude! How strong! How invincible!
It’s Level 2 that I find so disturbing. Entities pretending to obey mandates and policies but making it easy for no one to obey. Doing what you have to do to avoid litigation but not what you are supposed to do to avoid creating an unhealthy environment. It’s the sneakiness of it, the backhandedness of it. At least the maskless mobs are “true” to their beliefs.
6 comments
You have coined a most apt, descriptive term – and performative compliance is everywhere. In fact, a person I know recently noted that most people at his gym here in the Seattle area only wear their masks to get in the door. I see their like in every public place I venture – their chins/necks are well protected but the rest of us are not.
Sadly, I have to acknowledge that I am related to a level 3 person who talks the talk but wears a mask to keep their job. I haven’t seen them since last December.
Update: I just examined the bottom of the unmarked container for the wipes by the ice machine. They are gym wipes for “sweat and grim.”
As a Level 1 business owner, I acknowledge how hard it is to stay in this zone and can see why/how businesses slip into performative compliance. I think being incredibly protective of my staff and personally invested in the health of my clients makes it easy to stay at Level 1. I also understand businesses that are doing their best to do just enough to keep their lights on. I’m sure some are fearful that if they follow all the rules to a T, they will lose patrons and therefore, lose their business. Personally, I don’t feel tempted to slide into performative compliance, but I also know the struggles of keeping a small business open and can sympathize with those that feel that they have no choice but to performatively comply. Thankfully, we all have the ability to personally choose what businesses we support and have a responsibility to keep ourselves and others safe, no matter how strict the business rules are. Just wipe the buttons, people! (or use your sleeve…)
Thanks, Jess, for this insider’s view. Your business, from day one of this pandemic, has been a MODEL of responsible–and responsive–behavior. Going to FB right now to give you a shout-out.
Well. Where to begin? I don’t go out much because Tennessee is so fucking dangerous. Masks are (to use the term formerly reserved for dry states) “county option.” Even the White House (yeah, that White House) told our governor to make masks mandatory. He refuses. I can’t tell you about ketchup bottles and ice machines because I haven’t been in a restaurant since March. I can tell you there are blue “bubblets.” Vanderbilt, where I went to the eye doc, is a blue bubblet: No admittance without mask, temp check, questions. My acupuncturist’s office is a blue bubblet. Ditto Sprouts market, though there is an issue with the touchpad where you pay. I wipe it off before and after, despite my gloves, but there’s no sign saying to do so. And I felt safe doing early voting–floor signs, masks enforced, disposable gloves, and a way to show ID without the poll worker touching it. But there is a general attitude that this is all just a nuisance–akin to maybe the sign in grocery store parking lots that say it sure would be nice if you’d return your cart. I know we have some Level 3 people, but it’s those Level 2 people you note who seem the most common and why I stay out of most stores–people who might put on a mask but let it hang around their necks. Because isn’t this virus thing getting boring, and can’t we talk about something else now?
Thanks for this report, Jane. Now get the hell out of there.
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