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The coronavirus is exerting a disproportionate toll on black people in places like Chicago, according to new statistics.
Blacks make up 52 percent of Chicago’s coronavirus cases and 72 percent of deaths, but make up only 30 percent of the population, Mayor Lori Lightfoot reported Monday.
"This is a call to action moment for all of us," she told a news conference. "When we talk about equity and inclusion, they are not just nice notions. They are an imperative that we must embrace as a city."
The virus' disproportionate impact on blacks also is reflected in new data released Monday by Illinois and Michigan officials.
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In Illinois, blacks make up 30 percent of the state’s 12,262, coronavirus cases and 42 percent of 307 deaths. Blacks make up 15 percent of the state’s population.
In Michigan, blacks make up 33 percent of the state's 17,221 coronavirus cases and 41 percent of 727 deaths. Blacks make up 14 percent of the state’s population.
Michigan’s largest city Detroit, which is 79 percent black, represents 7 percent of Michigan’s population but 26 percent of the state’s infections and 25 percent of its deaths, news outlet BridgeMI.com reported last week.
A similar disparity emerged in another Rust Belt city, Milwaukee, according to ProPublica Friday.
Lori Lightfoot speaks after being sworn in as Chicago's 56th mayor by Judge Susan E. Cox during an inauguration ceremony at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois, U.S. May 20, 2019. (REUTERS/Kamil Krzaczynski)
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The news outlet found that blacks made up almost half of Milwaukee County’s coronavirus cases and 81 percent of its 27 deaths. One-quarter of the county’s black population is black.
New York state and New York City, hard hit by the virus, haven’t broken down virus cases and deaths by race. There have been 4,758 deaths in New York state, 3,485 in the Big Apple.
There have been nearly 369,000 COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and more than 11,000 deaths.
Officials say there are many factors contributing to the disparity.
“We have equity and health access disparities all across our city, and particularly in black and brown neighborhoods,” Lightfoot said. “We know that problems of diabetes, of heart disease, of respiratory illness, are really prevalent in communities of black and brown folks. We know that access to health care is a similar challenge in a lot of those communities.”
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WLS-TV reported interviewing two pastors about the situation.
The Rev. Michael Pfleger told the station, "If you have communities who have lack of access to health, lack of access to food, to good earning jobs, to employment, we should not be surprised."
Pastor Phil Jackson was quoted as saying that the COVID-19 numbers should be a wake-up call for a community that he said has not taken the virus seriously enough, especially some young people who are not social distancing.
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"It's as if there is an illusion that it is for white folks or older people, that was a rumor in the neighborhood," Jackson said.
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