The coronavirus (COVID-19) is a global pandemic. It has taken control of the world, enshrouding it in fear and mayhem. Everyone is scared for their lives, their loved ones' lives, the state of the economy, and rightly so. It is a terrifying time. It is a type of fear so strong and so widespread that it has inhabited the heart of nearly every human like a nasty parasite. It has begun to control our decisions, our outlook on life. It has brought out our protective and defensive instincts. It has caused us to make decisions that are, in fact, based on fear and the fear of what could happen if we make one wrong move.

We are living in a state of fear that is bringing out the darker parts of humanity, and quite honestly, our horrid reaction to this virus scares me.

One of the biggest shows of our ill-placed fear that has really stood out to me over the past week is the situation with the Holland America Zaandam Cruise Ship. It was filled with Americans (and numerous Floridians), as well as a decent amount of people from various countries around the world.

Or, you could say, it was filled with humans.

After departing from Buenos Aires, Argentina on March 7, right before America essentially began the "corona shutdown," multiple passengers began to fall ill. As America became engulfed in a nationwide shutdown, with the toilet paper supply essentially depleted and "safer-at-home" orders taking effect, this cruise ship requested to disembark in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Why? Because they had four dead passengers and dozens and dozens of sick passengers when they requested disembarkation.

But Florida did not want them.

Yes, you read that correctly: Four dead passengers on the ship and dozens more sick with flu-like symptoms, and Florida did not grant their request.

As a Floridian, I was shocked and disappointed not just at the fact that we initially wouldn't let a ship with hundreds of our own citizens disembark, but I was even more disgusted at the fact that many Floridians cheered this decision on out of fear of the coronavirus the passengers carried on the ship.

People chose to condemn other humans to the fate of this virus out of plain and simple fear of it. Human beings died and were dying on that ship, and no one wanted to help them. Out of fear.

Since when did humanity become so cold? Since when does refusing safety and rescue of our own citizens become a victory for Americans?

Basing decisions on fear is never the answer, but it is exactly what happened in this situation. Which, quite frankly, doesn't make much sense to me. If everyone stayed within their houses and quarantined like they are supposed to, how will those with the virus on the ship even infect them? These passengers, whether or not they are aboard a cruise ship, are human beings and deserve treatment if needed.

The Holland America president "pleaded for compassion," the passengers pleaded for a safe haven off of the "death ship," and the daughter of an older couple on the ship even posted a video begging Florida to let the ship dock when they arrived. With the increase in pleas, President Donald Trump became involved and pushed for Florida to allow the cruise ship to dock in South Florida.

After nearly a week of deliberations that consisted of totally rejecting the ship, only accepting the Floridians, and many other compromises when it should have been a simple answer of "Yes, we will help our fellow human beings," Florida finally decided to allow the ship — and its sister ship — to dock at Port Everglades and begin disembarking on Thursday.

So, what does this all say about us as humans? It says that, in a time of fear, we turn our backs against other humans. Instead of offering a compassionate and helping (gloved) hand to a cruise ship full of sick and dying humans, our initial reaction in the face of fear is to turn our backs against them, to refuse to help them.

It shouldn't matter if they're Floridians, Americans, or from any other country in the world, humans do not leave other humans to die on a floating grave.

All I can do is beg for my fellow human beings to learn from this and react better in the face of coronavirus fears because we will be tested again as COVID-19 continues to spread, and if we so easily turn our backs on those sick and dying again, we will be paving a very scary path for the future of humanity. If history has taught us anything, decisions we make based solely on fear do not pan out to be good decisions. I'm glad Florida changed its mind, but I'm eternally disappointed in the initial reaction.