Episodes
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The Killing of George Floyd – A Nation Protests
Over the last few months everyone has been gripped by COVID 19, and now we are faced with a reckoning, ripping at the heart of Black America and the world, about police-involved shootings resulting in the deaths of black people. The disturbing killing of George Floyd sparked outrage, anger and protests. Will the death of George Floyd change how African Americans are treated and open up a serious dialogue about race in this country? -
Businesses - Ready to reopen?
It’s been a little over two months since Massachusetts’ stay at home advisory forced non-essential businesses to close their doors. As we’ve seen, minority businesses not only lost income, but most were shut out of stimulus funding. Governor Baker’s four phase plan for reopening kicked off last week. But will some minority companies never reopen? And how will the ones still standing manage a new costly way of doing business? -
Race as a health imperative
No longer up for debate communities of color have suffered the worst health and economic losses because of the coronavirus. Less understood– how that vulnerability is linked to a history of segregated policies. Cities like Pittsburgh and Milwaukee have offices that regularly evaluate racial inequities– a model Boston is discussing. Could that ensure more equity in accessing aid and resources? And what does that have to do with the crisis happening at this moment? -
COVID-19 and Minority Business Owners Fighting For Economic Survival
The Paycheck Protection Plan or PPP was supposed to be a lifeline for small businesses struggling to survive during the COVID 19 crisis. But 90 percent of small businesses of color were left on the sidelines after the multi-billion-dollar stimulus funding was quickly gobbled up. Now Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey is demanding an overhaul of the forgivable loan program. And this week Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley joined Senator Kamala Harris proposing a 124-million-dollar grant program targeted to microbusinesses, and especially small minority businesses. Two local minority business owners joined us in March right after the shelter at home advisory. Tonight, an update on their status, and a question—How can small businesses of color get their fair share in the economic recovery? -
Digital Divide and Coronavirus
COVID 19 has revealed hard truths about America’s many divides --- none wider than the huge gap between those with access to technology and those without. Two decades ago, the nation’s technological revolution-- the so-called information superhighway --- bypassed most communities of color. Now those same communities are struggling to function in a world that requires technology still out of reach for so many. With so much at stake, will COVID 19 deliver another blow to communities of color already reeling from high rates of infection? Or be a real wake up call to close the digital divide? -
Unemployment
It’s an economic setback not seen since the Great Depression. Back then minority workers suffered huge job losses, and now because of COVID 19 people of color today are experiencing higher rates of unemployment. A Pew Study reports that 49 percent—nearly half of all Latinos say someone in their household has taken a pay cut or lost a job. A Morning Consult poll this week found that 15 percent of all African American households include at least one person who has lost work. And small business owners of color are still struggling to get their fair share of the recently approved federal financial aid. How can communities of color survive during this economic crisis? -
Covid-19 and Race Disparities
Over thirty thousand Massachusetts residents are infected and more than 1000 have died from the coronavirus. But the COVID 19 pandemic continues to ravage the most vulnerable. The rising numbers confirm that African Americans and Latinos are contracting and dying of coronavirus at higher rates than other groups. Especially alarming—the high rates of infection in Chelsea and Lawrence, two cities with large minority populations. Given the reality, should enhanced testing and other health care resources be specifically targeted to communities of color? And looking forward -- will the COVID 19 crisis help overcome a legacy of racial bias in healthcare? -
Coronavirus and Mental Health
COVID-19 has changed our daily lives. How should we balance our mental health during these uncertain times? It’s been about 3 weeks since Governor Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency to slow the spread of the coronavirus -- urging all residents to shelter at home. But coping with the isolation and fear of this new normal has caused an uptick in depression and anxiety. Mental health issues are taking an even greater toll on people of color who face a devastating combination of health care inequities, financial losses, and racial bias …. -
Covid-19's Grassroots Impact
More than 3 million Americans applied for unemployment insurance this week, a number that experts say is likely an undercount, particularly in communities of color. Those communities have lost massive income with small businesses and individual proprietors forced to close their doors. And while hospitals are bearing the brunt of caring for rising numbers of COVID-19 victims, it’s community health centers that are where residents in communities of color turn to first. And they are struggling to meet the increased demand. The crisis has highlighted structural inequalities that already existed, and nowhere is that clearer than at the grass roots level in communities of color. -
Coronavirus Pandemic and Communities of Color
The number of people who have contracted the virus continues to rise in Massachusetts, around the country, and around the world. Scattered testing sites have just opened, but hospitals and medical staff are already overwhelmed. And most experts predict it will get far worse before it gets better. Everybody is hurting, but communities of color have been hit harder — With a disproportionate loss of income, and fewer health care resources. And how can communities of color -- already grappling with day to day racism---deal with race specific misinformation, as well as cope with increased racism and xenophobia?
