Facing Racial Disparity During A Pandemic

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As COVID-19 is rapidly rising in the United States, statistics reveal that POC communities, especially the black community, have been disproportionately affected. Unfortunately, while spreading this information the media has created a certain narrative by only mentioning the Black communities eat unhealthier and have substantially higher rates of cardiac disease and diabetes. There needs to be a discussion on what’s wrong with this and why nobody ever explains the full scope of why the Black community is where it is at today. There need to be explanations, not just statements that do not bring awareness to the situation, and only seem to contribute to racial stereotypes. Let’s talk about the why, why do marginalized peoples make up a significantly larger percentage of cases and deaths? What has contributed to black families being vulnerable targets of societies? Why is this just a statistical observation but not a situation that needs to be fixed? This is a conversation that has to be had. 

Starting from the statement that has been going around news networks, Black people have higher rates of Coronavirus infections and have more illnesses due to poverty. What’s wrong with this? Well, let’s begin with the alarming poverty rates. Due to gentrification which began in around the 1960s, many black Americans were forced out of their neighborhoods and progressively pushed away into smaller and more condensed spaces. This along with segregation long faced by the Black community contributed to the growth of “hoods.” Along with the growth of these neighborhoods and ongoing racism, especially during the civil rights era, poverty increase with violence and the introduction of drugs. Lower-income and long hours (it is common for people to work multiple jobs or shifts to afford to live especially with the growing gentrification that is bringing up prices) push many Black families to have to result in purchasing cheaper food and meals because America does not provide its people with healthy food at an affordable price. Processed foods tend to be more affordable, quicker to buy, and always available as many of these companies exploit and target lower-income communities. The ability to buy fresh and quality produce is a luxury in America. This is why underlying health issues are so much more prevalent putting them at higher risk than any population. Black Americans make up a large population of essential workers on the frontline of this pandemic, tot to mention the spread of the coronavirus is much quicker in condensed urban areas. 

Moreover, bias and racism in the medical field have for too long disregarded Black people that it is not uncommon for them to be turned away or for pregnant women to end in critical condition. There is a concerning inequality of healthcare and treatment stemming from racial bias which goes back for decades in American history is contributing to unequal testing and even delay in being able to even get tested. Conscious and unconscious racial bias is putting lives at risk. White communities, however, are more likely to receive better care, more attention, quicker action, and testing. Not to mention medical facilities in minority communities have less equipment, shown have lower-quality care, and less prepared to deal with patients in critical states or with deadly illnesses like COVID-19. This pandemic is not just a health issue but a socio-economic and political one as well. The reality of the situation is painfully obvious. 

So no, the Black American population is not just more affected just because of diabetes or hypertension, they are vulnerable than ever because of racial disparities and the systematic racism.