The latest survey by the University of California, Berkeley found the racial divide is wider than ever when it comes to who’s hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic in California.
It included new information about the disproportionate impact on Native Americans.
There’s been a lot of talk about how Blacks and Latinos have been suffering the most from COVID-19, but not much data about Native Americans, until now.
UCB Sociologist G. Cristina Mora, co-director of the university's Institute of Governmental Studies, said that while California Latinos worry the most about the effects of the pandemic and are most likely to have a sick family member, tribal Californians are not far behind.
"The pandemic has affected their ability to meet their basic needs," she said. "They’re worried about losing their job. They’re worried about not being able to pay for health care - things of the sort. So, in many ways, they look a lot like our Latino population. In one way, you might sort of situate them between Black and Latino need."
On KCBS Radio’s "The State of California," Mora said she wished that she could report that the racial disparities are shrinking, but they’re actually going in the other direction, with fewer white Californians hurt by the pandemic and more people of color reporting serious medical or economic effects.
Mora added that she hopes this study will open the government’s eyes to the needs of all people of color, including natives.
"So often, these communities are neglected," she said. "They’re neglected in the way we think about who makes us California, and where government attention should lie."
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