Interview with Henry Bullock
IntervieweeInterview with
Henry Bullock
InterviewerInterviewed by
Peter Moran
Date2022 July 7
Mediumborn digital audio file
DimensionsDuration: 1 Hour, 8 Minutes, 17 Seconds
ClassificationsInformation Artifacts
Credit LineCommunity History Project Collection
Description(a) Interview with Henry Bullock. Interviewed by Peter Moran on July 7, 2022 at New Haven Free Public Library Ives Branch, 133 Elm Street, New Haven. (b) Photograph of Henry Bullock taken at his interview. He was interviewed as part of the Connecticut Historical Society's Community History Project discussing his experience during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
At the time of the pandemic, Henry Bullock lived in a studio apartment in New Haven with his children. He first heard about COVID-19 from watching television. Henry formerly worked for a soup kitchen, but was not working at the start of the pandemic, although he recalled many of his friends lost their jobs. He recalled the first disruption to his life were when businesses began shutting down and needing to go to multiple stores in order to buy the things he needed due to shortages from panic-buying.
Henry caught COVID-19 multiple times when his kids brought it home from school. At first, he thought he just had a cold. His doctor advised him to get tested, and his test came back positive. His symptoms were not serious, like a cold. Henry continued to take precautions, wearing a mask and washing hands frequently. He remembers using Facebook much more during the pandemic and finding out that some of his friends died from the disease over social media.
Henry looked to the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] for information at the start of the pandemic, as this was the same source of information he had relied on while working in the food industry. He recalled lots of conflicting information from the news and was skeptical when the vaccines were released. He took a “wait and see” approach to the vaccines. He waited to hear from medical professionals, such as his children’s doctors that he personally knew to give advice before deciding.
When asked about vaccine mandates, he was skeptical and noted he thought it was unfair to fire healthcare workers due to their refusal to take the vaccine. He was not sure that the vaccines worked. Regarding mask mandates, Henry said that he wore a mask regardless of mandates. He said that some of the mandates didn’t make sense, such as when masks were required to enter a restaurant but allowing people to remove them as soon as they sit down.
When asked about the summer of 2020 and the murder of George Floyd, Henry referenced a police officer he spoke to who quit his job due to changes in the police force. He said that according to the police officer he spoke to, new officers were brought in from different towns who acted like bullies.
Henry notes that he was a Democrat and does not believe the election was stolen. When asked about January 6th [January 6 Insurrection, Washington, D.C., 2021], he said he believed Donald Trump instigated the events.
Henry recalled the difficulty of remote learning for his children. His children missed the social components of school. He noted the difficulty of not being able to take his children to places they enjoyed, such as the mall, museums, and the carnival. When the governor reopened museums and made public museums free, he took his children immediately. They went to the Maritime Museum, Bronx Zoo, and participated in many other public activities that they had missed out on. Henry noted that he felt depressed during the pandemic due his concern for his children’s sense of normalcy. His family still participated in family events and cook-outs, if they were held outside.
Henry said that many people and businesses took advantage of the pandemic when they didn’t need it. He used his old job as an example. According to Henry, they received 2.5 million dollars from the government that they didn’t need, but still asked people for donations. Henry claimed that the soup kitchen reported it took them $50-$100/day to feed one person, but they received all the food for free. Henry believed they were padding their pockets. He supports distributing checks to individuals, but not to businesses.
Henry said he lost precious memories during the pandemic, and that he found reassurance in the government when they distributed stimulus checks. The greatest lesson he learned was that something bad could come from anywhere, and that the pandemic changed him by making him more cautious. His advice for someone who experiences a pandemic is to hold your loved ones close, and to find people you trust and listen to them rather than people on television. His hope for the future is that this won’t happen again in his children’s lives but does not believe that the world is any more prepared to handle future pandemics.
At the time of the pandemic, Henry Bullock lived in a studio apartment in New Haven with his children. He first heard about COVID-19 from watching television. Henry formerly worked for a soup kitchen, but was not working at the start of the pandemic, although he recalled many of his friends lost their jobs. He recalled the first disruption to his life were when businesses began shutting down and needing to go to multiple stores in order to buy the things he needed due to shortages from panic-buying.
Henry caught COVID-19 multiple times when his kids brought it home from school. At first, he thought he just had a cold. His doctor advised him to get tested, and his test came back positive. His symptoms were not serious, like a cold. Henry continued to take precautions, wearing a mask and washing hands frequently. He remembers using Facebook much more during the pandemic and finding out that some of his friends died from the disease over social media.
Henry looked to the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] for information at the start of the pandemic, as this was the same source of information he had relied on while working in the food industry. He recalled lots of conflicting information from the news and was skeptical when the vaccines were released. He took a “wait and see” approach to the vaccines. He waited to hear from medical professionals, such as his children’s doctors that he personally knew to give advice before deciding.
When asked about vaccine mandates, he was skeptical and noted he thought it was unfair to fire healthcare workers due to their refusal to take the vaccine. He was not sure that the vaccines worked. Regarding mask mandates, Henry said that he wore a mask regardless of mandates. He said that some of the mandates didn’t make sense, such as when masks were required to enter a restaurant but allowing people to remove them as soon as they sit down.
When asked about the summer of 2020 and the murder of George Floyd, Henry referenced a police officer he spoke to who quit his job due to changes in the police force. He said that according to the police officer he spoke to, new officers were brought in from different towns who acted like bullies.
Henry notes that he was a Democrat and does not believe the election was stolen. When asked about January 6th [January 6 Insurrection, Washington, D.C., 2021], he said he believed Donald Trump instigated the events.
Henry recalled the difficulty of remote learning for his children. His children missed the social components of school. He noted the difficulty of not being able to take his children to places they enjoyed, such as the mall, museums, and the carnival. When the governor reopened museums and made public museums free, he took his children immediately. They went to the Maritime Museum, Bronx Zoo, and participated in many other public activities that they had missed out on. Henry noted that he felt depressed during the pandemic due his concern for his children’s sense of normalcy. His family still participated in family events and cook-outs, if they were held outside.
Henry said that many people and businesses took advantage of the pandemic when they didn’t need it. He used his old job as an example. According to Henry, they received 2.5 million dollars from the government that they didn’t need, but still asked people for donations. Henry claimed that the soup kitchen reported it took them $50-$100/day to feed one person, but they received all the food for free. Henry believed they were padding their pockets. He supports distributing checks to individuals, but not to businesses.
Henry said he lost precious memories during the pandemic, and that he found reassurance in the government when they distributed stimulus checks. The greatest lesson he learned was that something bad could come from anywhere, and that the pandemic changed him by making him more cautious. His advice for someone who experiences a pandemic is to hold your loved ones close, and to find people you trust and listen to them rather than people on television. His hope for the future is that this won’t happen again in his children’s lives but does not believe that the world is any more prepared to handle future pandemics.
Object number2022.20.20a-b
NotesSubject Note: The Connecticut Historical Society’s Community History Project (CHP) is a public-facing initiative, focused on contemporary collecting, gathering items of the recent past as well as from events happening today. This program developed community historians to identify, document, and preserve their experiences as residents of Connecticut, and to share these experiences during a series of community presentations. The project focused on the impact of Covid-19 on Connecticans, particularly on Black and Brown communities, funeral homes, and on nursing home and elder care populations.
Cataloging Note: This cataloging project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services MA-249472-OMS-21.On View
Not on view
2022 June 8
