The coronavirus has had a disproportionate and deadly impact on African Americans, Native Americans, the homeless and the incarcerated.
An Associated Press breakdown of available US data found that:
- 33 per cent of those who have died from COVID-19 are African-American.
- The Navajo nation – the largest group of Native Americans – has lost more people to coronavirus than 13 US states.
- Four of the ten largest-known hotspots of infection have been correctional facilities.
- In New York City, which has become the global epicentre of the pandemic, there are 17,000 homeless living in about 100 shelters.Former US Secretary of Labor Robert Reich says COVID-19 has exposed America’s class divide and its gross inequalities, leaving the country’s “forgotten people” to bear the brunt of the pandemic.
“This group includes everyone for whom social distancing is nearly impossible because they are packed into places most Americans don’t see: prisons, jails for undocumented immigrants, camps for migrant workers, Native American reservations, homeless shelters and nursing homes,” he said.