University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.
CUNY Institute for Health Equity.
J Health Polit Policy Law. 2020 Dec 1;45(6):937-950. doi: 10.1215/03616878-8641481.
COVID-19 is not spreading over a level playing field; structural racism is embedded within the fabric of American culture, infrastructure investments, and public policy and fundamentally drives inequities. The same racism that has driven the systematic dismantling of the American social safety net has also created the policy recipe for American structural vulnerability to the impacts of this and other pandemics. The Bronx provides an important case study for investigating the historical roots of structural inequities showcased by this pandemic; current lived experiences of Bronx residents are rooted in the racialized dismantling of New York City's public infrastructure and systematic disinvestment. The story of the Bronx is repeating itself, only this time with a novel virus. To address the root causes of inequities in cases and deaths due to COVID-19, we need to focus not just on restarting the economy but also on reimagining the economy, divesting of systems rooted in racism, and the devaluation of Black and Brown lives.
新冠疫情的传播并非在公平的环境下进行；结构性种族主义深植于美国文化、基础设施投资和公共政策的结构之中，从根本上导致了不平等。正是这种种族主义推动了美国社会安全网的系统性瓦解，也为美国在这场疫情和其他大流行病中的结构性脆弱性制定了政策。布朗克斯区为研究这场大流行病所展现的结构性不平等的历史根源提供了一个重要的案例研究；布朗克斯区居民的现状源于纽约市公共基础设施的种族主义式瓦解以及系统性投资不足。布朗克斯区的故事正在重演，只不过这一次是新型病毒。要解决新冠病毒导致的病例和死亡方面的不平等问题，我们不仅需要关注重启经济，还要关注重新构想经济，摆脱根植于种族主义的体系，以及避免黑人及其他少数族裔的生命被贬低。
