Welcome to Coronavirus News For Black Folks
For the (un)foreseeable future, I'll be focusing my personal newsletter on coronavirus (COVID-19) news directly related to us.
SpeakPatrice Presents: Coronavirus News For Black Folks
The What:
As a Black woman freelance journalist passionate about writing stories for us, I’ve been desperately brainstorming constructive ways to lend my writing skills to help suppress the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and pandemic. At the same time, for a *long* time, I’ve been wanting to write more original stories independent from any publication, for my own audience, and to start a newsletter as a way of practicing that.
So I decided to combine all of these ideas and dedicate my newsletter SpeakPatrice to highlighting coronavirus news for Black folks, both stories written by other journalists and by me, Patrice Peck (IG/TW/website).
I’ll be sending 2-3 emails per week, including a weekly curated round-up of stories, from national news to op-eds to feel good news. Subscribe now to get full access and never miss an update. And please share this newsletter. As the ancient Black proverb goes, we all we got.
The Why:
Here are three things we know to be true:
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic is the most important, most pressing news story of our time.
Black people — particularly those in the United States (which has the most confirmed cases worldwide as of 4/6/2020) — experience significant health disparities, including access to quality health care and insurance, and are disproportionately affected by cancer, heart disease, HIV, asthma, diabetes, obesity, and sickle cell disease. (The death rate for these illnesses is also generally higher for Black Americans than white Americans.)
These health disparities stem from social inequities that are deeply rooted in and perpetuated by systemic racism, including (but not limited to) a much higher barrier of entry to and/or lack of access to fresh foods and healthy environments, employment, fair working conditions, and other economic opportunities, housing, and unbiased and high-quality health These health disparities stem from social inequities that are deeply rooted in and perpetuated by systemic racism, including (but not limited to) a much higher barrier of entry to and/or lack of access to fresh foods and healthy environments, employment, fair working conditions, and other economic opportunities, housing, and unbiased and high-quality health insurance and health care, especially preventative services, like screenings and vaccinations.
According to the CDC, people who have serious underlying medical conditions — including cancer, heart disease, HIV, asthma, diabetes, severe obesity, liver and kidney disease, and sickle cell disease — might be at higher risk for severe illness from the coronavirus disease COVID-19.
And while the mainstream media has been doing an excellent job of providing stories about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the pandemic, there’s still a huge lacking of widespread, daily coverage focused on the ways in which the disease and pandemic will/are disproportionately impacting the Black community.
Not only will this lack of coverage likely worsen the pandemic overall due to a lack of greater awareness and information about the disease and pandemic within (and without) our community, but it’ll also devastate our community to a much greater, deadlier degree.
The How:
So “Coronavirus News For Black Folks” aims to empower our community by (1) circulating existing coronavirus (COVID-19) news and stories as it relates to the Black Diaspora and (2) creating our own original FUBU written and audio content to fill the many gaps within existing coverage, like how the disease and pandemic are specifically impacting our physical and mental health, our social and cultural structures and institutions, and more.
Stay tuned.
— Patrice