SpeakPatrice Presents: “Coronavirus News For Black Folks”
The What:
Hello there. You’ve reached SpeakPatrice Presents: “Coronavirus News for Black Folks.” Subscribers can expect a monthly curated round-up of stories, from national news to op-eds to solution news. Sign up now to get full access and never miss an update. And please share this newsletter. As the ancient Black proverb goes, we all we got.
The Who:
As a Black woman and a freelance journalist — and a Black woman journalist passionate about writing stories for us — I’ve been desperately brainstorming constructive ways to lend my writing skills to help fight this disease, suppress its spreading, and end this pandemic. I’ve also been wanting to write more original stories independent from any publication, for my own audience, and start a newsletter.
So I decided to combine all these ideas and dedicate my newsletter SpeakPatrice to highlighting coronavirus news for Black folks, both stories written by other journalists and by me, Patrice Peck (IG/TW/website).
The Why:
Here are three things we know to be true:
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic is the most important, most pressing news story of our time.
Black people — particularly those in the United States (which has the most confirmed cases worldwide as of 4/6/2020) — experience significant health disparities, including access to quality health care and insurance, and are disproportionately affected by cancer, heart disease, HIV, asthma, diabetes, obesity, and sickle cell disease. (The death rate for these illnesses is also generally higher for Black Americans than white Americans.)
These health disparities stem from social inequities that are deeply rooted in and perpetuated by systemic racism, including (but not limited to) a much higher barrier of entry to and/or lack of access to fresh foods and healthy environments, employment, fair working conditions, and other economic opportunities, housing, and unbiased and high-quality health care, especially preventative services, like screenings and vaccinations, and insurance.
According to the CDC, people who have serious underlying medical conditions — including cancer, heart disease, HIV, asthma, diabetes, severe obesity, liver and kidney disease, and sickle cell disease — might be at higher risk for severe illness from the coronavirus disease COVID-19.
And while the mainstream media has been doing an excellent job of providing stories about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the pandemic, there’s still a huge lacking of widespread, daily coverage focused on the ways in which the disease and pandemic will/are disproportionately impacting the Black community.
Not only will this lack of coverage likely worsen the pandemic overall due to a lack of greater awareness and information about the disease and pandemic within (and without) our community, but it’ll also devastate our community to a much greater degree.
The How:
So, “Coronavirus News For Black Folks” aims to empower our community by circulating existing coronavirus (COVID-19) news and stories as it relates to the Black Diaspora and creating our own original FUBU written and audio content to fill the many gaps in coverage, from how the disease and pandemic are specifically impacting our physical and mental health, our social and cultural structures and institutions, and more.
Subscribe now to get full access and never miss an update. And please share. As the ancient Black proverb goes, we all we got.
In the News:
The journalist behind "Coronavirus News for Black Folks"
Black Journalist Launches Newsletter to Keep Black People Informed About the Coronavirus Pandemic
— Zack Linly, The Root
“It’s important to have news platforms that are specifically tailored to fit the needs of black people who wish to stay informed. This is more true now than ever before, as the current global health crisis has proven to infect and kill black people disproportionately in the U.S. Thankfully, one black journalist was innovative enough to provide a space where we can stay informed and updated on the pandemic.”
This Veteran Journalist Created A Newsletter To Give Black Folks Important Coronavirus News
— Dana Givens, Black Enterprise
“The rapid spread of COVID-19, or the novel coronavirus, has ravaged communities in the U.S. and across the world. In major cities such as New Orleans, Chicago, and Milwaukee, a majority of the new cases have been African American patients. Internet conspiracies and a historic mistrust of the medical field has only made many not go to the hospital. One journalist is looking to change the way black people stay informed about the virus outbreak.”
Newsletter Seeks To Give Black Folks The Coronavirus News Most Pertinent To The Community
— Jon Greig, Blavity
Veteran writer and reporter Patrice Peck is hoping to give Black people a better understanding of how the virus is affecting their communities.
This newsletter looks to inform the Black community about the coronavirus
— Adriana Lacy, Nieman Lab and The Intersection
Though often referred to as the “great equalizer,” the novel coronavirus has disproportionately hit black communities and decades of disparities are now on full display. Journalist Patrice Peck is dedicated to covering all of this with her newsletter, Coronavirus News For Black Folks.
People
