Black Americans Report Worse Effects of Bias From COVID-19

By | June 8, 2020

A new poll by Axios-Ipsos, the world’s third-largest market research company, shows that Black Americans are more concerned about the pandemic’s impact on their lives than white Americans.

The poll found that African Americans report that they have been impacted differently and generally worse by the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, nearly 30% of Black Americans know someone who died of the coronavirus compared with only 11% of their white counterparts, and at least 41% knew someone who tested positive compared with 31% of white poll respondents.

In addition, more than half (61%) of employed Black Americans expressed worry about their job security, while only 39% of white Americans were concerned. Also, 33% of African Americans said their personal finances are in poor shape, almost twice as many as white individuals (18%).

Furthermore, most African Americans reported a lack of trust in both the national and local government responses to the pandemic as well as concerns about biases.

Although less than one in five (18%) Black people trusted the federal government to have their family’s best interests in mind, more believed local and state governments (46% and 52%, respectively) handled the problems better.

Black Americans were also less likely to have a high level of trust in local police (36%), compared with white Americans (77%).

Additionally, 75% of Black people were seriously concerned about how much damage people of color sustained from the pandemic, and 70% verbalized worry that the official pandemic response was biased against certain groups of people compared with the views of white Americans on the same issues, 30% and 32%, respectively.

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For related coverage, read “Why Are Black Communities Hit Hardest By COVID-19?” and “How States Are Addressing COVID-19 Racial Disparities.”

Click here for the latest coronavirus news, and click here to learn how medical groups are calling racism a public health issue.


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