A Tale of Divide
It is of no surprise that our neighborhoods have been hit the worse during this pandemic. For starters, there tends to be less room to quarantine away from others, and some of us come from an already compromised immune system. Then there is the massive issue of health insurance and the lack thereof — we are priced out of annual preventive visits to doctors and much needed medications. We can all agree that COVID is exposing even more how race and class determine whether you live or die in America.
Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health stated at a White House Coronavirus task force debriefing, that the crisis “is shining a bright light on how unacceptable that is, because yet again, when you have a situation like the Coronavirus, [African Americans] are suffering disproportionately.”
And Dr. Fauci is correct.
In an analysis that was in accordance to the states reporting data, “Black people accounted for a higher share of confirmed cases in 20 of 31 states and deaths in 19 of 24 states compared to their share of the total population” (published April 21, 2020 by Samantha Artiga, Kendal Orgera, Olivia Pham, and Bradley Corallo). They also reported that “in 6 out of 26 states reporting data, Hispanic individuals made up a greater share of confirmed cases compared to their share of the total population”. The Guardian released an analysis where they found that states did not explicitly include Native Americans in their demographic data as they were categorizing them under the label “other”.
In addition to the crisis hitting minority populated areas, it is also clear that discriminative behavior is adding to the issue at hand. We are seeing across social platforms crowds of people (wearing maga hats & waving confederate flags) show up at the steps of governors doors with rifles protesting for their state to reopen. And it’s not just them, you have images going viral of large crowds also mainly of Caucasian people, gathered at a West Village park in NYC tanning and largely unprotected by masks— and they say NYC is full of “woke liberals”. We don’t even need to tell you what the police do in our neighborhoods… you’ve probably seen the videos of police officers brutally beating and arresting young Black men doing the same. Even in times of quarantine, we get no peace.
Watching the arrest of BLMNY Chairman Hawk Newsome for capturing the harassment on video that was displayed by officers while a family was mourning the loss of their aunt was despicable. A 15 year old son was jumped by the officers from a squad car and when the rest of the family came to his aid, the cops responded by pepper spraying their entire family. Please note that Newsome was practicing social distancing until suddenly the police noticed him recording, surrounded him, smacked away his phone and arrested him.
Between laying in the park while Black and our lack of access to healthcare, there are irrefutable examples showing the racial disparities of the effect of COVID-19 and the importance to call on our officials to report mistreatment and demand aid for this crisis. Demanding your senator take the steps to send letters to urge the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to collect racial and ethnic demographic data on testing and treatment for the Coronavirus disease.
Times are difficult for everyone during this pandemic, but this is not the great equalizer being coined by so many that have absolutely no validity in saying so. If this were the great equalizer, we would not see the disparity in how this virus is affecting POC and our communities at large. We need transparency in the way that we treat and respect every person's civil liberties. Everyone should have equal opportunity to cope how they need to while respecting the responsibilities of protecting the community. If someone needs fresh air and they do not wear masks we do not slam their bodies to the pavement but should instead provide them with information— kindness from a public servant shouldn’t be determined by someone’s skin color.
TheGIRLMOB sends love and regards to the families that have lost loved ones to the virus as well as to those that are still losing them to unnecessary police brutality. Now is the time to remind our people about peace, love and their rights as members of this country. Informing everyone about risks associated with the virus, the vulnerabilities exposed, aiding the elderly or those at risk by helping them with groceries and providing people with homemade masks. Further, the importance of comprehensive nationwide data that looks at correlations of race and ethnicity will allow for better understanding of how COVID-19 affects certain areas and what our specific response efforts should be.
We hate to say this, but while we are under a Trump administration the re-energizing, protection of our communities and rebuilding will fall on us as a people. As an immigrant from Venezuela, I come from a country that eliminates the freedom of its citizens from voting, while instilling fear, violence and oppression. After moving to the U.S. and seeing people take for granted the opportunity to vote and take action for change I felt frustrated and disillusioned by the dream of democracy. It is up to us to make the change we want to see and stop seeing our brothers and sisters killed. We welcome y’all to lead the same initiatives in your hood.
We hope that come November we can get 45 out of office as him and his goons will derail us from overcoming the aftermath that we will be left with once a vaccine is found. If you’re not registered to vote please click here to do so. Share it with friends, family and any newly turned 18 y/o. The revolution is ours for the making.
We know that many of you might feel like there’s nothing you can do. We feel that within the group too. We know many of you have lost so much already— jobs, loved ones, housing— it is exhausting. We know that this is adding to our anxieties, depressions and overall mental health. But we want you know that you’re never alone. We are right beside you. Here are some resources for your wellness & mental health needs:
I love reading or listening to Julia Childs Heyl who is a healing advocate, writer and social worker. I recommend tuning in for #MentalWellnesswithJulia where she touches on topics involving mental health during the crisis.
BEAM Collective is a collective of advocates, yoga teachers, lawyers, therapists that are committed to the emotional/mental health and healing of the Black community. They offer virtual therapy, work along with other organizations to create support for people living with HIV, and amazing workshops that are built to offer mental health aid.
There are programs offered through the Black Mental Health Alliance that offer help to victims of trauma and help rebuild because of civil unrest specifically in the Baltimore area. The workshops are culturally sensitive and are for youth, parents, adults and caregivers.
The National Association of Black Counselors offers different pricing for students, retirees and paraprofessional. They focus on providing a network that serves the community while also strengthens the lack of black therapists and counselors. The importance of culturally sensitive counseling allows for them to target specific cases with 15 different divisions including Afro-Latinos, faith and spirituality, marriage, and correctional health.
After watching the Netflix special on Michelle Obama’s Becoming book tour, I was affected by the scene in which a young student asks about dealing with invisibility. Michelle says “ I never felt invisible. We cant afford to wait for the world to be equal to start feeling seen.You may have already known all the things that I wrote in this post, but I needed to acknowledge them on paper for me. For us. If you have a story to share or just want to connect, hit me on e-mail.
