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COVID-19 is hitting Latinx communities hard, but there’s lack of access to bilingual, culturally informed treatment. Anxiety and fear are pervasive during the coronavirus pandemic. Yet some populations are undergoing even greater psychological trauma — and Hispanics are among them.

“All of us have been experiencing stress; for Latinx communities it’s double,” said Olivia Quiroz, executive director of the Oregon Latino Health Coalition.

Latinxs are about twice as likely as white people to view the coronavirus as a major threat to their health, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey. Another Pew survey found around half of Hispanics said they or someone in their household has taken a pay cut or lost a job, or both, because of the COVID-19 outbreak, compared with 33% of all U.S. adults. But when it comes to obtaining effective mental health support to cope with these intense strains, Oregon Hispanics will encounter a longtime deficit.

“The gap is pretty enormous in terms of Latinxs having access to linguistically and culturally appropriate care,” said Kat Kelly, who’s worked as a therapist and now serves as director of strategic initiatives at Catholic Charities of Oregon. The Catholic nonprofit’s counseling center is one of a limited number of programs in the state offering bilingual, culturally informed therapy.

As coronavirus cases increase, “it’s triggering a lot in our Latinx communities,” said Quiroz, and the psychological repercussions “are bubbling up at a rate that we are not prepared to respond to.”

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) found Hispanics typically struggle with common mental health disorders such as major depression, generalized anxiety disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder at rates similar to the general population, but they are at higher risk for severe mental health problems. That’s in part due to the poor quality — or lack — of care they tend to receive. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Minority Health, Hispanics obtain mental health treatment half as often as non-Hispanic whites.

Read more on the CatholicSentinel.org.

In early March, Yuming Wang, a Philadelphia lawyer, watched with increasing concern reports of racist incidents against Asian Americans over coronavirus fears trickle in from other cities. A Chinese woman was attacked for wearing a mask in New York City. A 16-year-old Asian American student was physically assaulted in Los Angeles.

Wang, who is the honorary chairman of the Pennsylvania United Chinese Coalition, decided to create a WeChat group for Chinese Americans who were worried about the rising numbers of racist incidents during the pandemic. Soon after, he began working closely with state and local police, the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations, and other law enforcement agencies to encourage Chinese Americans who experience racist incidents to report them.

“Chinese Americans have been increasingly worried about their safety every day, and the issue is getting deeper and deeper into their mental health concerns,” Wang said. “Among [the group members], the biggest concern is that when someone goes somewhere, [they] may be attacked, verbally or physically, because of being Asian or Chinese Americans.”

Many Philadelphians are reluctant to leave their homes because of fears over contracting COVID-19. But members of the city’s Asian American communities have an additional worry — many are growing increasingly anxious about dealing with racist incidents, which can lead to negative mental health effects.

The number of hate crimes against Asian Americans has been decreasing for 15 years, according to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report data from 2003 to 2017. But in late March, federal law enforcement began to warn communities that hate crimes against Asian Americans will increase as the coronavirus crisis goes on.

This concerned mental health experts, as a growing body of research indicates a link between racial discrimination and anxiety and depression. In a 2013 review of 121 studies on the effects of racism on youth, researchers found that youth who experienced discrimination were significantly more likely to suffer from mental health problems. A 2007 study that surveyed 2,047 Asian Americans identified racial discrimination as a significant predictor of mental health disorders over a 12-month period.

Even before the pandemic began, Asian American communities were considered a high-risk group among mental health experts. Survey data from the 2011 National Latino and Asian American Study found that Asian American women have a 17% chance of developing a psychiatric disorder over their lifetime, and they are three times less likely to seek mental health services than white women are. Results from the 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health found only 6.3% of Asian Americans who were age 18 and over received mental health services in 2017, compared with 18.6% of white people.

Racism against Asian Americans has existed for centuries — COVID-19-related violence is just a recent iteration. Kevin Nadal, a psychologist and professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice whose research focuses on the mental health effects of microaggressions, said it’s important to acknowledge that the fear of experiencing racism is very real.

“The Asian American community is so diverse,” Nadal said. “People are going to experience this differently, just like how after 9/11, East Asian Americans might not have experienced the targeting of Arab Americans or South Asians. But we have to care about it, whether or not it personally affects us. We have to be just as vigilant as if it was happening in our own communities.”

Read more on the PhiladelphiaInquirer.com.

In this time of the coronavirus pandemic, the NNED wants to ensure that its members are informed about two federal financial support programs for individuals and small businesses that may be economically impacted. The first program is geared to non-profit and for-profit small businesses of less than 500 employees; the second program is for individuals and families.

Assistance for Small Businesses

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) prioritizes millions of Americans employed by small businesses by authorizing up to $349 billion toward job retention and certain other expenses. Small businesses and eligible nonprofit organizations, Veterans organizations, and Tribal businesses described in the Small Business Act, as well as individuals who are self-employed or are independent contractors, are eligible if they also meet program size standards. PPP provides small businesses with funds to pay up to 8 weeks of payroll costs including benefits. Funds can also be used to pay interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities.  The application period began on April 3.  Apply ASAP as there is a funding cap.

The PPP authorizes forgivable loans to small businesses to pay their employees during the COVID-19 crisis. All loan terms will be the same for everyone.

The loan amounts will be forgiven as long as:

• The loan proceeds are used to cover payroll costs, and most mortgage interest, rent, and utility costs over the 8 week period after the loan is made; and
• Employee and compensation levels are maintained.

View the PPP Information Sheet to learn more about this program.

Download the PPP application form.

Economic Impact Payments: What you need to know

On March 30, 2020, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that distribution of economic impact payments will begin in the next three weeks and will be distributed automatically, with no action required for most people. However, some taxpayers who typically do not file returns will need to submit a simple tax return to receive the economic impact payment.

Who is eligible for the economic impact payment? Tax filers with adjusted gross income up to $75,000 for individuals and up to $150,000 for married couples filing joint returns will receive the full payment. For filers with income above those amounts, the payment amount is reduced by $5 for each $100 above the $75,000/$150,000 thresholds. Single filers with income exceeding $99,000 and $198,000 for joint filers with no children are not eligible. Social Security recipients and railroad retirees who are otherwise not required to file a tax return are also eligible and will not be required to file a return. Eligible taxpayers who filed tax returns for either 2019 or 2018 will automatically receive an economic impact payment of up to $1,200 for individuals or $2,400 for married couples and up to $500 for each qualifying child.

Read more on the IRS.gov.

Native American communities experience a much higher rate of mental health issues, such as substance abuse and suicide, than any other racial or ethnic group in the country ― and the media tend to fixate on these grim figures.

Data shows that tribal communities experience psychological distress 1.5 times more often than the general population, and Native Americans use and abuse alcohol and drugs at younger ages and at higher rates than any other ethnic group. Plus, suicide is the second-leading cause of death among 10- to 34-year-olds in tribal communities.

But Doreen Bird, Ph.D., an expert on mental health issues in tribal communities, says numbers like these tell only part of the story.

Bird, who hails from the Kewa Pueblo of New Mexico, has devoted her career to researching mental and behavioral health among Native American communities. She notes that suicide rates can vary widely from tribe to tribe, and cautions against treating all Native peoples as a monolith.

“You can get a very different picture among different tribal nations,” Bird told HuffPost.

Because of the stigma surrounding suicide, the reported numbers can also sometimes be off. In tribal communities, there’s a reluctance to speak about those who have died by suicide, as well as mistrust of outside researchers who examine issues related to suicide but aren’t from within the tribal communities, she added. It can also be taboo to talk about those who have died, Bird explained.

Bird, a 48-year-old mom of six and grandmother of three, wants to change the way tribal communities’ stories are told and hopes to change the conversation around some of the toughest challenges facing many Native populations around the country.

She says alcohol abuse in her own family motivated her to explore these issues from a public health perspective, which means balancing her tribal background with her academic training. From 2016 to 2018, Bird served as a Senior Tribal Prevention Specialist at the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, where she worked with 16 tribes across the United States to address suicide prevention. Recently, she obtained her doctorate in justice studies at the Arizona State University School of Social Transformation.

Read more at HuffPost.com

In order to highlight pockets of excellence across the country, the NNED selects a partner organization to highlight once a month. Empowerment Zone Coalition Inc., has been selected as the Partner of the Month for April in recognition of National Minority Health Month.

The mission of the Empowerment Zone Coalition (EZC) is to raise public awareness and to mobilize communities to improve quality of life for Detroit residents through education, health promotion, wellness, and the prevention of substance use and mental health disorders in the city of Detroit with strong emphasis on the Eastside. EZC develops new initiatives based on identified needs of the community.

Since its inception in May 1996, the coalition has been “Rebuilding the Village” through community empowerment. Coalition members and additional volunteers are dedicated to increasing protective factors through faith-based substance abuse prevention and community involvement. The Empowerment Zone Coalition, Inc. is a very unique 501(c)(3) community-based non-profit that focuses on comprehensive substance abuse prevention. EZC is a broad based coalition with agency collaborations that improves collective advocacy and service delivery to the community with strong focus on the youth and families. For the past 14 years, EZC’s goals were to raise the visibility of the coalition, increase public awareness of substance abuse issues, and public policy advocacy.  

Some of the programs and services that are currently offered:

• A Collective Call to Action: Training & Workshop Series – The Collective Call to Action Workshop Series were designed to educate the community on health, substance abuse and drug-related issues in an effort to counteract the misconceptions and work towards changing the negative social norms in the community.
• Partnerships – EZC continues to work diligently with several partners to maximize the resources offered to the community, reduce the duplication of services, and reach a larger portion of the population. Through the partnerships, EZC has successful organized Prescription Take Back Days, Underage Drinking Town Hall Meeting, World AIDS Day, Kick Butts Day, Red Ribbon Week, Alcohol Awareness Month, HIV/AIDS and Substance Abuse Prevention Public Education Campaign, and etc.
• Education and Advocacy – EZC develops innovative initiatives to raise public awareness on health issues affecting the citizens’ quality of life and work with community citizens to take an active role in changing social conditions in the community through public forums, town hall meetings, public education campaigns and other strategies.
• “Come Walk with Us” Project – According to data provided by Gallup report, the adult obesity rate so far in 2013 is 27.2%, while the 2011 National Youth Risk Behavior Survey indicated that among United States high school students are 13% obese. Obesity can lead to depression, suicide and substance use/abuse. “Come Walk with Us” Project is designed to help individuals to live a healthier lifestyle by exercising and learning about additive substances and healthy tips. The project provides education on proper walking techniques and healthy tips. The program is focus on youth and their families in the city of Detroit.

Learn more about Empowerment Zone Coalition Inc. and their vision to build a safe, healthy, and drug free community that values cultural diversity and assures adequate housing and social services for all in Metro Detroit.

View a list of previous NNED Partners of the Month.

As a growing number of COVID-19 cases are identified in New York City and across the United States, people have become conscious of public health recommendations: wash your hands, stay home if you are sick, cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze. Equally important, however, is stepping up the advocacy for communities and individuals most vulnerable – not just those with underlying health conditions, but communities of color, immigrant communities, incarcerated communities, and low-income communities.

As many have said before: People are all only as safe as those members of the community who are most at risk. This means working together to demand that local and state governments adopt policies that can protect marginalized communities and individuals. It also means being conscious about language and messaging.

Organizations such as Race Forward, America’s Voice, and Family Values @ Work, have already pointed out that communities of color, low-wage workers, and incarcerated and detained populations are at disproportionate risk of being affected both by the coronavirus and the response to its spread. For these populations, the health and economic ramifications could be severe.

Asian people, in particular, have been the target of racist ire and discrimination – so much so that Asian businesses and restaurants have already suffered a significant blow.

America has a long historical relationship with othering, allowing implicit and explicit bias to influence others thinking and language, whether it be the example of distancing ourselves from “third world endemics” or referring to “inner city crime” or the “culture of poverty.” Instead, people should work together to actively dispel xenophobic myths and racist misinformation. Addressing implicit bias and racism is not always easy, but it is imperative, which is why The Opportunity Agenda developed a messaging tool to help advance these conversations.

Other forms of harmful bias have also surfaced during this pandemic. For example, people should think twice before stating that the virus “only gravely affects those who are old or those with an underlying condition,” a statement that inherently places greater value on the young and healthy. Instead, let’s direct the conversation around how everyone can work together to protect those most likely to be affected. After all, few communities know the invisible health conditions of those around them, and everyone all have someone they love who struggles with physical or mental health.

What perhaps makes the COVID-19 pandemic unique is that everyone is literally all in this together – across boundaries illusory and recognized, across nations, oceans, and the globe. Therefore, communities have a unique opportunity at hand. While the economic and racial disparities in how this epidemic could be handled are clear, now is the time to call for greater and more equal health justice. Now is the time to join communities of color in their demands for racial equity. Now is the time to protest the scapegoating of immigrants. People must push back against the language of fear and adopt language of inclusion, empowerment, and justice. Together, everyone can rise to the challenge.

Read more on the OpportunityAgenda.org.