Where life is sustained: care, body (s) and community in times of pandemic

Abstract

The global spread of COVID-19 and its consequent health crisis has brought to light social inequalities that have been present but hidden for years, including the care crisis, which we analyse here. In order to understand why the current pandemic context has affected the care sector so profoundly, it is necessary to start by looking at the role of care in society, delving into the causes and consequences of its invisibility. To this end, given that care is always provided from and to the body, it is necessary to delve deeper into the meaning of the body. The sociological analysis of the concept «body» introduces us to the questioning of the responsibility of social sciences in its invisibility and, at the same time, of its usefulness in generating social change from a change of perspective of the same concept. Finally, a look at the different social initiatives against the pandemic that have been carried out, which presents the most hopeful side of this crisis, shows us the importance of community organization in taking action to alleviate the effects of the deep social inequalities of today.