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NEWS / When it comes to coronavirus deaths, race issues
« on: January 19, 2021, 03:35:28 AM »
The COVID-19 virus was once called the "best equalizer" because of its potential to infect everyone at the speed of the pandemic. But the data on mortality has different opinions.
The coronavirus does not affect everyone equally. Instead, it exacerbates racial disparities in the overall health outcomes of the United States. The gap is caused by the country’s own existing conditions: people’s living and working conditions are almost equal in terms of pollution levels and prevention of harmful toxins.
These differences are most obvious in urban environments that have become hot spots for pandemics. There, the proportion of ethnic minorities killed by the coronavirus is higher than the total urban population. At the epicenter of the country’s pandemic, New York City, the death toll of blacks and Latinos was about twice the total population. In Chicago, the gap is even worse: Blacks account for 70% of coronavirus deaths, but about 30% of the city’s population.
In early April, before the in-person vote in Wisconsin, about 80% of Milwaukee’s coronavirus deaths were black, even though the city’s share of blacks was only 25%. Since then, seven more coronavirus cases have been linked to voting on election day, but the full impact of the spread of the virus is unclear.
These statistics shocked a lot, but environmental justice experts and advocates are not surprised.
In an interview with Outlook, PolicyLink President and CEO Michael McAfee said: "During a pandemic, there is no balance from total inequality." "I think we missed it." The storyline is that we are here in design, we are here in our arrogance, we are here in our lack of leadership, we are here, because our organization no longer cares and knows how to serve those who need it most People in need. Our investment withdrawal has haunted us again, but it has been hidden from people’s sight.”
Although there are regulations and restrictions on harmful toxins used in various industries from energy to agriculture, they are not always Following these regulations, their impact disproportionately affects minority groups. According to EPA data, approximately 70% of black Americans live in counties where pollution levels exceed federal standards and therefore violate federal laws.
Blacks and Hispanics are also more likely to engage in basic jobs, which means they will continue to work and face the risk of exposure to the coronavirus, with limited protective measures and protective equipment. In many cities, ethnic minorities account for the majority of important public sector employees. They operate and maintain buses and subways, and work in public hospitals and clinics.
For a long time, the factors that determine people's health are various environmental factors at home and work, as well as differences in access to conventional medical services. Before the coronavirus, it was well known that black people were more likely to suffer from asthma or cancer due to frequent exposure to harmful toxins. Black children are more likely to die from asthma attacks than white children. Blacks are also more susceptible to lung disease than whites, although they are less likely to smoke.
Jacqui Patterson, senior director of NAACP's Environment and Climate Justice Program, said: "I said that the coronavirus has found fertile ground for the vulnerability of this type of health condition." "When you encounter these pre-existing conditions, people have already The airway is more likely to die at [beginning], and the things you add will put more pressure on the airway, such as COVID-19, which exacerbates the stressors they get into trouble.”
Patterson added, when someone lives In heavily polluted areas, their lungs are more difficult to work, so when a disease that attacks the respiratory system arrives, it can exacerbate the negative health effects that existed.
For its part, the current federal government does not prioritize environmental protection, let alone consider the protection of race. Since taking office, the Trump administration has been working to reduce the previous Clean Air Act standards and regulations in industry operations.
Not only the federal government should be blamed. When considering pollution and industry, local governments often fail to prioritize public health. The Little Village community (mainly Latino community) in Chicago is adjacent to an energy industry plant. Despite the coronavirus pandemic, the city allowed Hilco to dismantle an old coal plant that covered the area with smoke and dust. The small village is already one of the most polluted places in Chicago.
Antonio Lopez, a senior consultant at the Chicago Freshwater Laboratory, said: "These differences in injury, environment, and death have already existed in Chicago. I think the coronavirus has exposed these differences again." "But I think it also Emphasize to us that the solutions we need to consider must be different." Lopez added that these environmental justice solutions will not require a "thorough approach" and must be developed around the different vulnerabilities of specific communities.
Among these loopholes, race is an important factor. McAfee, along with the We Must Count Alliance and other advocates, is committed to ensuring that race data is collected during the pandemic. This can be a tricky process. As McAfee said, many public agencies "do not want to provide data", they will say "we need data to make informed decisions", so this has become a hot topic-22."
McAfee said, but data is indispensable Less. "You are injecting trillions of dollars into the economy, and we hope to be able to raise accountability questions about who needs these dollars and where. "
Facts have proved that the first round of small business loans and assistance in the CARES Act did not involve minority businesses. McAfee said that in order to avoid the mistakes brought about by past crises, it not only involves public health but also economic recovery. It is now necessary to collect the demographic data most affected by the coronavirus.
However, for its part, the federal government has not yet collected racial, ethnic and geographic data on the impact of the coronavirus. There have not been many hospitals or states since the pandemic began. In the absence of such data, it may be misunderstood which group is the most vulnerable.
Peggy said: “When the media says that people of a certain age will be at higher risk, it’s not right because In communities of color, people of lower age suffer from chronic diseases and live with severe air pollution. "Shepard of WE ACT Environmental Justice in Harlem. "This means that communities of color are at higher risk when you are young. "
Despite many people calling for a return to normal life, these environmental justice experts and advocates emphasized that "normal life" will not improve the lives of millions of Americans who were struggling before the coronavirus. They called for change.
There is no sign of the pandemic that the situation will improve, and the economic impact seems to be much worse. McAfee explained that simply restoring the status quo will leave many people behind. "For the 100 million people living in 200% poverty before COVID-19, this will never be good enough. As experts say, if this will be worse than 2008, if the unemployment rate will be even higher than during the Great Depression. High, then it's safe to say that black people and brown-haired people are F*uking," he said.
"It is absolutely impossible to miss it," Patterson said. "Whether it is Hurricane Katrina, the BP oil spill disaster, or all these different disasters that have occurred in the past, the pattern has always been the same. Therefore, in order to prevent us from falling into this juncture, we must stop thinking: "How do we How to improve the lives of the poor, how to improve the lives of people who are discriminated against because of race, and how do we make the lives of people of one kind, one kind or another better? "We must review systemic inequality and its root causes."
The coronavirus does not affect everyone equally. Instead, it exacerbates racial disparities in the overall health outcomes of the United States. The gap is caused by the country’s own existing conditions: people’s living and working conditions are almost equal in terms of pollution levels and prevention of harmful toxins.
These differences are most obvious in urban environments that have become hot spots for pandemics. There, the proportion of ethnic minorities killed by the coronavirus is higher than the total urban population. At the epicenter of the country’s pandemic, New York City, the death toll of blacks and Latinos was about twice the total population. In Chicago, the gap is even worse: Blacks account for 70% of coronavirus deaths, but about 30% of the city’s population.
In early April, before the in-person vote in Wisconsin, about 80% of Milwaukee’s coronavirus deaths were black, even though the city’s share of blacks was only 25%. Since then, seven more coronavirus cases have been linked to voting on election day, but the full impact of the spread of the virus is unclear.
These statistics shocked a lot, but environmental justice experts and advocates are not surprised.
In an interview with Outlook, PolicyLink President and CEO Michael McAfee said: "During a pandemic, there is no balance from total inequality." "I think we missed it." The storyline is that we are here in design, we are here in our arrogance, we are here in our lack of leadership, we are here, because our organization no longer cares and knows how to serve those who need it most People in need. Our investment withdrawal has haunted us again, but it has been hidden from people’s sight.”
Although there are regulations and restrictions on harmful toxins used in various industries from energy to agriculture, they are not always Following these regulations, their impact disproportionately affects minority groups. According to EPA data, approximately 70% of black Americans live in counties where pollution levels exceed federal standards and therefore violate federal laws.
Blacks and Hispanics are also more likely to engage in basic jobs, which means they will continue to work and face the risk of exposure to the coronavirus, with limited protective measures and protective equipment. In many cities, ethnic minorities account for the majority of important public sector employees. They operate and maintain buses and subways, and work in public hospitals and clinics.
For a long time, the factors that determine people's health are various environmental factors at home and work, as well as differences in access to conventional medical services. Before the coronavirus, it was well known that black people were more likely to suffer from asthma or cancer due to frequent exposure to harmful toxins. Black children are more likely to die from asthma attacks than white children. Blacks are also more susceptible to lung disease than whites, although they are less likely to smoke.
Jacqui Patterson, senior director of NAACP's Environment and Climate Justice Program, said: "I said that the coronavirus has found fertile ground for the vulnerability of this type of health condition." "When you encounter these pre-existing conditions, people have already The airway is more likely to die at [beginning], and the things you add will put more pressure on the airway, such as COVID-19, which exacerbates the stressors they get into trouble.”
Patterson added, when someone lives In heavily polluted areas, their lungs are more difficult to work, so when a disease that attacks the respiratory system arrives, it can exacerbate the negative health effects that existed.
For its part, the current federal government does not prioritize environmental protection, let alone consider the protection of race. Since taking office, the Trump administration has been working to reduce the previous Clean Air Act standards and regulations in industry operations.
Not only the federal government should be blamed. When considering pollution and industry, local governments often fail to prioritize public health. The Little Village community (mainly Latino community) in Chicago is adjacent to an energy industry plant. Despite the coronavirus pandemic, the city allowed Hilco to dismantle an old coal plant that covered the area with smoke and dust. The small village is already one of the most polluted places in Chicago.
Antonio Lopez, a senior consultant at the Chicago Freshwater Laboratory, said: "These differences in injury, environment, and death have already existed in Chicago. I think the coronavirus has exposed these differences again." "But I think it also Emphasize to us that the solutions we need to consider must be different." Lopez added that these environmental justice solutions will not require a "thorough approach" and must be developed around the different vulnerabilities of specific communities.
Among these loopholes, race is an important factor. McAfee, along with the We Must Count Alliance and other advocates, is committed to ensuring that race data is collected during the pandemic. This can be a tricky process. As McAfee said, many public agencies "do not want to provide data", they will say "we need data to make informed decisions", so this has become a hot topic-22."
McAfee said, but data is indispensable Less. "You are injecting trillions of dollars into the economy, and we hope to be able to raise accountability questions about who needs these dollars and where. "
Facts have proved that the first round of small business loans and assistance in the CARES Act did not involve minority businesses. McAfee said that in order to avoid the mistakes brought about by past crises, it not only involves public health but also economic recovery. It is now necessary to collect the demographic data most affected by the coronavirus.
However, for its part, the federal government has not yet collected racial, ethnic and geographic data on the impact of the coronavirus. There have not been many hospitals or states since the pandemic began. In the absence of such data, it may be misunderstood which group is the most vulnerable.
Peggy said: “When the media says that people of a certain age will be at higher risk, it’s not right because In communities of color, people of lower age suffer from chronic diseases and live with severe air pollution. "Shepard of WE ACT Environmental Justice in Harlem. "This means that communities of color are at higher risk when you are young. "
Despite many people calling for a return to normal life, these environmental justice experts and advocates emphasized that "normal life" will not improve the lives of millions of Americans who were struggling before the coronavirus. They called for change.
There is no sign of the pandemic that the situation will improve, and the economic impact seems to be much worse. McAfee explained that simply restoring the status quo will leave many people behind. "For the 100 million people living in 200% poverty before COVID-19, this will never be good enough. As experts say, if this will be worse than 2008, if the unemployment rate will be even higher than during the Great Depression. High, then it's safe to say that black people and brown-haired people are F*uking," he said.
"It is absolutely impossible to miss it," Patterson said. "Whether it is Hurricane Katrina, the BP oil spill disaster, or all these different disasters that have occurred in the past, the pattern has always been the same. Therefore, in order to prevent us from falling into this juncture, we must stop thinking: "How do we How to improve the lives of the poor, how to improve the lives of people who are discriminated against because of race, and how do we make the lives of people of one kind, one kind or another better? "We must review systemic inequality and its root causes."