UNPROTECTED Series: Part 1: 'Politicized’ coronavirus pandemic harmed Black Iowans
NEWSLETTER: Black Iowans: COVID-19, vaccines and bias in health care.
Editor’s Note: This series was made possible by a grant from the Black Press Grant Program of the National Association of Black Journalists.
Iowa leaders prioritized politics over public health during the coronavirus pandemic — contributing to disproportionate COVID-19 infections, unnecessary deaths and low vaccination rates in Black communities, Black leaders and critics said.
“We are such a small number they don’t feel they have to act on our concerns,” said Donna Henderson, owner of Henderson’s Highland Park Funeral Home, one of two Black-owned funeral homes in the state.
About 90% of Iowa’s population is white; 4% is Black. More than 407,838 Iowans have tested positive, and more than 6,170 people have died from the disease, as of July 22. Blacks accounted for 12,158 cases, and 157 Blacks have died from COVID-19, according to the Iowa COVID-19 Tracker, an independent tracking site.
“The COVID-19 virus was running rampant in our community,” said Henderson, whose funeral home has been a fixture in Des Moines for 20 years. “The impact of the deaths aren’t as shocking here because of the small number of minorities in Des Moines. It doesn’t sound like a lot — unless it’s your family.”
When the pandemic — and year of social unrest following George Floyd’s murder — swept across Iowa upending lives, Blacks braved outbreaks on the front lines, on unemployment, in prisons, unhoused, distanced from their places of faith and skeptical of the institutions that were supposed to protect them. Read the FULL STORY.
Coming Friday: Part 2: Barriers to Vaccination Hurt Black Iowans
New Black-Owned Video Conferencing Platform AONMeetings is ‘Positioned for Growth’
Sponsored Content: Iowa-based start-up's video conferencing platform gains popularity.
AONMeetings.com is bringing an affordable video conferencing platform to the masses. With eight layers of security and encryption and bells and whistles available on its standard plan, AONMeetings provides large corporations, small businesses and consumers with a sleek video conferencing solution and online meeting software. READ MORE.