States Rushing To Open Businesses Will Put Black And Latino Workers And Customers At Serious Risk — Which Might Be Part Of The Plan

Fascinating leftover @CivisAnalytics stat from this piece:

Of Americans WHO OPPOSE LOCKDOWNS:

Just over 5% are nonwhite workers who have personally lost a job in the crisis.

Just under 70% are white workers who have *not* lost a job in the crisis. https://t.co/QZlltD5pqA

— Jim Tankersley (@jimtankersley) April 27, 2020

Opening up selected businesses in states still experiencing "widespread" new infections of COVID-19 will put the health of thousands of economically vulnerable black and Latino Americans at serious risk. For Republicans, that is an added plus.

Is there really a nationwide clamour to open bowling alleys as soon as possible?

Job or Health? Restarting the Economy Threatens to Worsen Economic Inequality
The coronavirus recession has exacerbated the racial and income divides in America. Lifting restrictions too soon will make them worse and leave workers with a bleak choice.
Jim Tankersley, New York Times, April 27, 2020

Efforts to quickly restart economic activity risk further dividing Americans into two major groups along socioeconomic lines: one that has the power to control its exposure to the coronavirus outbreak and another that is forced to choose between potential sickness or financial devastation. ...

State and federal officials have nowhere near the testing capacity that experts say is needed to track and limit the spread of the virus, and there is no vaccine yet. But states are already reopening, urged on by President Trump, who is eager to restart the United States economy. ...

"It's sad and scary," said Tina Watson of Holly Hill, S.C., who has seen her hours cut in half at the Wendy's where she works. Though her income has dropped from that cutback, she is worried about having to interact with customers when the state relaxes limits that have forced the restaurant to operate as drive-through only in recent weeks. "I'm feeling like my life is at risk if they open up our dining," Ms. Watson said. ...

The governors of Georgia and South Carolina have begun allowing some businesses to reopen, even though both states continue to see new infections and what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention call "widespread" community spread of the virus.

On Friday, Gov. Brian Kemp of Georgia allowed gyms, nail and hair salons, and bowling alleys to begin operating, with restaurants and movie theaters allowed to open on Monday. Colorado, Minnesota, Mississippi and Ohio are also allowing some businesses to start operating again. ...

Rashad Robinson, the president of the racial justice advocacy group Color of Change, said Georgia's governor "has targeted a whole set of businesses where black people both work and patronize." For those workers and customers, he said, "it is an absolute death sentence."

"The inequality we're seeing isn't unfortunate like a car accident," Mr. Robinson said. "It's unjust. It's being manufactured through a whole set of choices." ...

Higher earners and whites are far more likely to say they can work from home during the pandemic than lower earners and black and Latino Americans, according to an April poll for The New York Times ...

Black and Latino Americans have less ability to withstand a prolonged job loss than whites, because they entered the crisis with lower incomes and less wealth. The median black household had just under $18,000 in wealth in 2016, Federal Reserve statistics show, while the median Hispanic household had just under $21,000. The median white household had nearly 10 times more: $171,000. ...

In New York City and across the country, black and Latino Americans are dying at higher rates from the virus than whites. Economic polling data shows they are also losing their jobs and income to an outsize degree. In Minnesota, the share of black workers filing for unemployment over the last month is nearly 50 percent higher than the share of white workers.