Overview

• Speaking on Sept. 23 at the UN’s Healthy Indoor Air event in New York, Violet Affleck called for renewed masking and cleaner indoor air while wearing a KN95 mask and goggles.
• She declared filtered air a human right and pressed for ventilation, filtration, Far‑UVC deployment, free high‑quality masks, paid sick leave and universal healthcare.
• Affleck argued that SARS‑CoV‑2 is airborne, said a single infection can cause disabling multi‑organ harm, and warned that repeated infections heighten the risk of long COVID.
• Citing Yale scientist Dr. Akiko Iwasaki, she asserted that long COVID has surpassed asthma as the most common chronic illness in children under five.
• The 19‑year‑old Yale freshman, who has described a 2019 post‑viral condition, previously urged mask rules and filtration before the L.A. County Board and wrote on public health for the Yale Global Health Review.