Interview with Alexandria Robison

(a) Interview with Alexandria Robison. Interviewed by Abbie Cowan on July 20, 2022 at New Haven Free Public Library Ives Branch, 133 Elm Street, New Haven. (b) Photograph of Alexandria Robison taken at her interview. She was interviewed as part of the Connecticut Historical Society's Community History Project discussing her experience during the COVID-19 Pandemic. At the time of the interview, Alexandria was 27 years old living in New Haven, Connecticut working as a library technical assistant. Alexandria discussed both the challenges and advantages of working from home during the pandemic. Alexandria’s transition from in-person to at-home was easier than most; she worked from home previously and was accustomed to it. During the pandemic, Alexandria enrolled in graduate school to become a librarian. Alexandria noted how different social institutions operated in times of communal need and was appreciative of the cautious approach that the City of New Haven took regarding public health and safety. She voiced her support of masks and vaccines and described her frustration over people not following the rules. She expressed fear of being close to unvaccinated people, not for her own safety, but for theirs. Alexandria is a member of St. Thomas’s Episcopal Church in New Haven and described both her personal support, as well as the church’s support, of the Black Lives Matter movement. Alexandria’s personal relationships were impacted by the pandemic; her parents went through a divorce and her sister moved closer to family. When asked what she lost during the pandemic, Alexandria recalled the death of her two grandparents and the difficulty of not being able to hold her grandmother’s funeral. When asked what she found during the pandemic, Alexandra responded that she came out as gay. She also described the peace she found in nature and how it provided her with a temporary escape from the stress of the present.