At a recent event held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, Violet Affleck — daughter of Hollywood celebrities Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner — made headlines by calling on world leaders to reinstate global mask mandates. Speaking as part of the “Healthy Indoor Air: A Global Call to Action,” the 19-year-old Yale freshman delivered a speech focused on what she called the “ongoing pandemic” and the supposed dangers of relaxed COVID policies.
Wearing a KN95 mask during her address, Violet argued that leaders worldwide have rushed to declare the pandemic over and, in doing so, have endangered the health of vulnerable populations. She warned that the virus is still a serious threat and that abandoning masks has put countless people — especially children — at risk.
In her speech, Violet said, “We are told by leaders that we are the future, but when it comes to the ongoing pandemic, our present is being stolen.” She accused adult decision-makers of ignoring the continued spread of the virus and what she called the “threat of long COVID.” According to Violet, this neglect is a result of prioritizing normalcy over safety.
Violet also cited data from Yale professor Dr. Akiko Iwasaki, claiming that long COVID has surpassed asthma as the most common chronic illness in children under five. She claimed that one COVID infection can cause serious damage throughout the body, and that each reinfection increases the risk of long-term health complications.
Her statements painted a bleak picture of a world where children, she said, may grow up in chronic pain and fatigue, never knowing a healthy, energetic life. “I am furious on their behalf,” she said. “It is a neglect of the highest order to look children in the eyes and say, ‘We knew how to protect you and we didn’t do it.’”
Violet went on to compare the COVID fight to the past battle against indoor smoking, arguing that clean indoor air and the use of masks should be as normalized and widely accepted as banning smoking on planes or in public places. She concluded that air filtration and virus mitigation should be treated as a human right — just like clean drinking water.
This isn’t Violet’s first appearance in the public health spotlight. She has previously called for reinstating mask mandates in Los Angeles hospitals and advocated for increased investment in personal protective equipment (PPE) during public meetings. In 2023, she shared that she contracted a post-viral condition — which she links to long COVID — and has since remained vocal about her concerns.
Beyond her activism on COVID, Violet has also written about climate change and public health for the Yale Global Health Review, further establishing herself as an emerging figure in progressive health advocacy. Her speech at the UN marks another step in her push for governments to return to tighter pandemic restrictions and build infrastructure focused on air quality and virus prevention.
Read the original report by Jack Hobbs at the New York Post here.
