Job Losses Latinos, who make up a significant portion of the county’s hospitality industry, also disproportionately suffered economic consequences. They were severely impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns. Unemployment in California increased from 4.4% in March 2020 to nearly 16% at the end of June 2020, just three months into the pandemic, according to the Economic Policy Institute as reported in The San Diego Union-Tribune. However, unemployment for Latino and Black Californians was 18%. One year into the pandemic, the unemployment rate among Latinos in California was still nearly 10% compared to about 6.6% for Whites, according to an analysis by the Public Policy Institute of California, issued on June 10, 2021.
‘By Almost Every Metric’ One year after the start of the pandemic, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported on March 21 2021: “By most every metric, non-Whites in San Diego County have borne the brunt of COVID-19.” As the newspaper reported, Latinos, who make up about one-third of the county’s total population, represented about half of the 267,000 residents infected with COVID-19 in mid-March 2021. At the same time, as the county started to roll out the vaccine, Latinos were only 20% of the recipients. Of the 33,761 people hospitalized due to COVID-19 as of August 20, 2022, 13,464 were Latinos. Most devastatingly, of the more than 5,400 COVID-19 deaths in the county, 2,368 were Latinos—more than 40% of total deaths. The information was compiled by county health officials who maintain a COVID-19 dashboard.
“By most every metric, non-whites in San Diego County have borne the brunt of COVID-19.”
Covid unemployment (Daniel Wheaton, The San Diego Union-Tribune, March 20, 2021)
COVID-19 Inequities (Michelle Gilchrist, The San Diego Union-Tribune, March 20, 2021)
August 7, 2021 (Philip Molnar, The San Diego Union-Tribune)
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San Diego Latino Legacy – Timeline • Milestones • Stories
Chapter 8 – Facing COVID-19
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