Time - USA (2021-03-01)

100 TIME March 1/March 8, 2021

MEYNE

W YAT T

31 • Striking a chord

The killing of George Floyd in

May 2020 in Minneapolis ig-

nited protests in support of the

Black Lives Matter movement

on almost every continent. In

Australia, as demonstrations

renewed attention to the ra-

cial inequality faced by Indig-

enous Australians, the actor

and writer Meyne Wyatt de-

livered a searing monologue

about the experience of living

through systemic racism. The

sharp lines, written by Wyatt

for his play City of Gold, carried

a strong message. “Seeing us as

animals and not as people—

that sh-t needs to stop,” he said.

“Black deaths in custody—that

sh-t needs to stop.”

His words went viral and

immediately struck a nerve

in the country, which has re-

corded more than 441 Aborig-

inal deaths in custody since

1991. “Watching this was very
      uncomfortable,” said one Twit-
      ter user. Others commented
      that the monologue made them
      cry. An Australian comedian
      dubbed it “the best two min-
      utes of Australian TV ever,” and
      BuzzFeed even suggested it be
      taught in schools. Now Wyatt,
      who lives in Sydney, is direct-
      ing his fi rst short fi lm, which he
      also wrote. He’s also working on
      a new play—commissioned by
      the Sydney Theatre Company—
      and writing an episode on an
      upcoming television series.
      —Amy Gunia

Shikha

Gupta

32 • PROTECTING

FRONTLINE

WORKERS

BY ANDY KIM

In a crisis, small acts can make a

big impact. And in extraordinary

times, ordinary people, driven

by service, can do extraordinary

things. The early days of the

COVID-19 pandemic were some of

the darkest in America’s history. A

leadership vacuum from the White

House contributed to health care

professionals across the country

lacking the personal protective

equipment they needed to stay safe

and save lives.

Dr. Shikha Gupta wasn’t on

the White House Task Force. She

wasn’t a governor or a member

of Congress. She held no title

other than doctor and citizen. But

when she and her colleagues saw

a need—and a hashtag—they

met the moment and took action.

Powered by a dedicated coalition

of medical professionals and other

team members, the Get Us PPE

organization—where Gupta is the

executive director—has helped

distribute more than 6.5 million

pieces of PPE to frontline workers.

Their fi ght, like this pandemic,

is not done. But across the

country, millions of people working

to save lives can do so with

confi dence because of Gupta and

her colleagues’ small acts and

incredible impact.

Kim is a Democratic Congressman

from New Jersey

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