Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, director of Salud America! at UT Health San Antonio, has issued the following statement about the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and its aftermath across the country: "The murder of George Floyd at the hands of those whose duty it was to serve and protect him is one in a long series of tragedies impacting the Black community. We offer our condolences to the families of Mr. Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and the countless others who have died from perpetuated systemic racism and injustice in America. We stand with our Black brothers and sisters in this catastrophe, as well as those who are standing in the streets—putting themselves in harm’s way—to speak out against injustice. Racial injustice is a public health issue—and it permeates ...
Communication is a critical aspect of the human experience, and, for Dr. Jason Rosenfeld, it is the key to making any societal shift. From working with small communities in Africa to helping rural towns in the Rio Grande Valley, he has devoted his career to crafting the right phrase or infographic that can effect change. This work in healthcare communications has led to numerous victories over countless threats. With the spread of the current novel coronavirus, COVID-19, Rosenfeld, his colleagues, and a team of medical students at UT Health San Antonio are addressing this new danger by creating health messaging to help people understand what this illness is, how it spreads, how to stay safe, and other critical pandemic information. Rosenfeld, DrPH, MPH—an Assistant Professor of ...
Creativity is something that can be hard to define. Someone can paint with numbers and solve complexities with words. Still, with the current spread of the current novel coronavirus, many with passions that can range from painting to woodworking to storytelling are facing new difficulties, especially in their ability to produce work. Today, Tenoch Aztecatl, the newest producer of this podcast and video producer at Salud America, joins Salud Talks to discuss inspiration, innovation, and imagination — as well as how the global crisis has impacted those pursuits. Check out this discussion on the Salud Talks Podcast, Episode 32, "Creating Through Crisis"! WHAT: A #SaludTalks discussion about creativity during a global pandemic.
GUEST: Tenoch Aztecatl, the Video Producer of ...
Without childcare, going back to work after the coronavirus lockdown is not an option for many families. But many city and state leaders are overlooking this childcare dilemma as they push to reopen businesses, even while schools remain closed amid the pandemic. That’s why Melinda Lopez is speaking up. Rhode Island, where Lopez lives, began reopening businesses on May 9. But childcare sites have to remain closed through May 30. Beyond this three-week-lag, when childcare centers do reopen, they will take fewer kids. Many moms will still be left without a spot for their child. “I’m concerned about what our women in our communities are going to do,” said Lopez, an Education Strategies Specialist with Highlander Institute, Early Childhood Adjunct Instructor at Rhode ...
Millions of unauthorized, taxpaying immigrants will not receive any financial support from the U.S. government through its recent stimulus package. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provided most Americans with $1,200—as well as an additional $500 for each child under 17—to provide some economic security in the wake of the pandemic. Still, undocumented residents who pay taxes using a taxpayer identification number did not receive any help. Worse, children in that household, whether they are American citizens or not, won't receive aide either — and these families are suing the government over this issue. "The refusal to distribute this benefit to U.S. citizen children undermines the CARES Act's goals of providing assistance to Americans in need, ...
Life as a Latino immigrant is stressful. Migration is difficult. Changing immigration rules make it hard to get health-promoting assets. Fear of deportation and family separation add anxiety. Now the COVID-19 pandemic is worsening social and environmental inequities. Who is looking out for the mental health of Latino immigrants? Informed Immigrant, Immigrants Rising, and FWD.us have a 10-step guide to help mental health care providers respond to the distress of immigrants whose status is in flux due to ongoing changes to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, amid coronavirus. "In addition to managing the stress and uncertainty surrounding the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, there are around 700,000 immigrant youth who may also be worried and distressed ...
How is your neighbor doing during the coronavirus pandemic? In the Boston area, Anna Kaplan, Jessie Norriss, Sophia Grogan, Miriam Priven, Hannah Freedman, and other neighbors saw their neighbors lose jobs, with no money for bills or groceries. They saw college students and non-English speakers get no support. They each wanted to help their neighbors. So, together, they helped create Mutual Aid Medford and Somerville (MAMAS), an on-the-fly mix of multilingual online documents, Google maps, social media, and text-message threads where neighbors can offer to help, and/or ask for help with grocery deliveries, filing for unemployment, emotional support, and more. Since March 12, 2020, MAMAS has connected over 1,000 neighbors to each other and raised over $90,000 to meet ...
You might call Maria Pia Sanchez la reina de las mascarillas (the queen of face masks). Sanchez, a native of Chile who lives in Florida, worked with a few friends to sew masks to donate to front-line medical workers when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. But they didn’t just sew. Sanchez also created the Para Todos Mask Initiative Facebook page, which has generated a worldwide network of Chilean, Mexican, Guatemalan, Colombian, Venezuelan, and other Latino volunteers to create over 7,000 masks for those who need them most. Update 8/24/20: They've made over 14,000 masks! How did this small sewing group impact the world?!
Coronavirus Pandemic Spurs Sanchez into Action
COVID-19 swept across the United States quickly in March 2020. By April 2020, experts said Latinos and other ...
As the U.S. Government continues to push back against the economic downturn and the spread of COVID-19, disadvantaged groups—such as Latinos—aren't receiving an equitable share. The recently passed $484 billion stimulus package will give millions of Americans and U.S. businesses with economic relief, in combination with past relief legislation. However, the money isn't reaching workers who need it the most, like Latino immigrants. "The survey only confirms what we already know, that the Paycheck Protection Program money went to Wall Street billionaires and very little of it trickled to the mom-and-pop shops and small businesses of America," LULAC National President Domingo García told NBC. "Lupita's taqueria or Juana's quinceañera shop didn't get money while Ruth's Chris ...