Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, the most read Black digital newspaper and Black blog in Ohio and in the Midwest. Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com

By Kathy Wray Coleman, associate publisher, editor-in-chief

New York City-The coronavirus is killing Black and Latino Americans in New York City at twice the rate of Whites, an alarming statistic that reminds the Black community in particular that racism and racial disparities are alive and well in America, pandemic crisis aside.

But stats in general show an unprecedented trend of racial disparities in segments across the country when it comes to the deadly disease, disparities data regarding African Americans that have put Civil Rights groups like the NAACP and Black leaders and elected officials on notice.

Whites in the big city are dying at roughly 10 per 100,000, city officials and its mayor have said, and Asians nearly nine per 100,000.

On the other hand, Black deaths relative to the crippling flu-type virus that has no cure are doubling those of Whites at 20 per 100,000 and Latinos in New York are topping the chart at an even higher death rate of 33 per 100,000.

In contrast, studies also show that counties in states such as Illinois, Louisiana,  Michigan, Wisconsin and Florida Blacks have three times the rate of infections and four times the rate of deaths, poor Black communities suffering even more, partly due to poverty itself, little or no healthcare, and apathy, racism, ignorance, and demographics.

The virus has spread to all 50  states and Washington, D.C. and the nation has nearly 470, 000 reported cases and some 16,700 people dead,  worldwide figures showing that there are 1.6 million cases globally and roughly 96,000 deaths.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blaiso has said that while the death toll facts are preliminary they are indicative of the magnitude of the problem and  do not take into account the number of Blacks and Latinos who have died at home, a suggestion that a large number of those deaths may be unclassified.

The state of New York leads the U.S. with over 160,000 cases and 7,000 deaths , followed by New Jersey with under a third of that of New York and with 1,700 deaths, and then by Michigan, California, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Louisiana, respectively, Florida, Illinois, and Texas rounding out the top 10 states with the most coronavirus cases, and deaths.

It is grim news for a nation on the brink of a recession as fear gropes the country and unemployment claims rise to an all-time high at nearly 22 million.

Public health officials and governors in 43 states and Washington, D.C. have put out stay-at-home orders requiring that people remain at home except for essential such as food, healthcare, an essential job, and taking care of a loved one, Midwestern and southern states , namely Arkansas, South Dakota, North Dakota, Utah, Wyoming, Iowa and Nebraska, refusing to bow to pressure and issue such orders.

President Donald Trump has declined to issue a national stay-at-home order saying states need the autonomy to decide on their own.

Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, the most read Black digital newspaper and Black blog in Ohio and in the Midwest. Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former president Barack Obama one-on-one when he was campaigning for president. As to the Obama interview, CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE AT CLEVELAND URBAN NEWS.COM, OHIO'S LEADER IN BLACK DIGITAL NEWS.