Black Businesses Are Struggling To Adapt To The Coronavirus Crisis

The coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, has caused economic devastation across the country. Small business owners have been some of the hardest hit by the fallout after many cities issued mandatory stay-at-home orders, closing down all non-essential businesses to contain the virus. The health crisis has created a looming threat specifically for black business owners who make up 4.3% of business owners in the U.S and who are at a disproportionate disadvantage when it comes to securing small business loans.

“There’s this old saying, ‘When America catches a cold, black America catches pneumonia,’” Ron Busby, president and CEO of the U.S. Black Chambers Inc. told HuffPost.

Many businesses have had to halt their operations completely while others are taking advantage of other streams of revenue through digital content. The need to adapt to the changing landscape has pushed many entrepreneurs to go into crunch mode if they expect to keep afloat during a difficult time. Social media has also provided a way for independent businesses to stay connected to their customers with the use of Instagram Live streams.

“I’m hearing from people that are already feeling the crunch and are even going to feel it more in the next couple of weeks,” Busby said. “But I’m excited that our firms that are prepared, are taking this time to be locked away in their own homes, are really trying to think about their businesses and how they’re going to come out of this.”

Other businesses are seeing an increase in business as a result of the virus outbreak. OneUnited, the largest black-owned bank in the country, has seen a huge increase in its virtual banking since the start of the pandemic.

“To some degree, we’ve seen a positive impact, and I say this cautiously, because it’s still early, but we think that people are becoming much more comfortable with doing business online,” said President and CEO Teri Williams. “We’re seeing an increase in customers. Also, people are trying not to go into branches. Our online business is actually growing, but it’s early in this whole experience.”

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10 Affirmations to Ease Anxious Days During COVID-19

The bad news: As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spiral throughout the globe, the only thing you can control these days is, maybe, your thoughts. The good news: Doing that alone can improve everything: your mood, your blood pressure, your productivity, interactions with others, and your long-term outlook, not to mention your actual ability to fend off (or endure) the new coronavirus.

Here are 10 affirmations to help you ease anxiety during this time.

1. Arthur Ashe 

Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can.

2. Ava Duvernay

What if we believed that everything happens for us, not to us?

3. William Edward DuBois

There is in this world no such force as the force of a man determined to rise.

4. Hallmark card

Sometimes you’ve got to let go of the handlebars and reach up to the sky.

5. Martin Luther King Jr.

We must use time creatively…and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do great things.

6. Anna Deveare Smith

Be more than ready…Start now, every day, becoming, in your actions, your regular actions, what you would like to become in the bigger scheme of things.

7. Nelson Mandela

I don’t ever lose. I either win, or I learn.

8. Tyler Perry

The trials we go through and the blessings we receive are the same thing.

9. Muhammad Ali

Don’t count the days. Make the days count.

10. Misty Copeland

I will forever fight, performing like it’s my last show. And I will love every minute of it.

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San Francisco Bay Area Extends Shelter-In-Place Order Through May 1 Due To Coronavirus

Anticipating a surge in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations, officials in seven San Francisco Bay area jurisdictions have extended shelter-in-place orders from April 7 to May 1.

“I am sad to have to say the worst is yet to come,” Dr. Grant Colfax, San Francisco’s public health director, said in a press conference last week. “Every community where the virus has taken hold has seen a surge in coronavirus patients who need to be hospitalized. We expect that to happen in San Francisco in a week or two or perhaps less.”

The Bay Area, which consists of Alameda, Berkeley, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, also falls under a statewide stay-at-home order issued by California Gov. Gavin Newsom. The governor issued the order on March 20 and said it could last until June.

According to Yahoo News, city officials originally announced a three-week shelter-in-place order would go into effect on March 17 and would end on April 7. The order directed residents to stay home as much as possible and to only leave for essential needs, such as to go grocery shopping or to buy medicine.

The new guidelines include the closures of recreational areas, including all public dog parks, playgrounds, picnic areas, golf courses, and tennis and basketball courts. Additionally, shared spaces like pools or rock walls, are also barred, and all funerals must be limited to 10 people only.

Construction has also been suspended during the coronavirus outbreak except for projects deemed necessary for essential infrastructure. Airports, utilities, and public transit can remain operative under these guidelines. Notaries, real estate agencies, and title companies are also allowed to stay open.

Florida and Pennsylvania have also increased their quarantine restrictions in recent days. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases predicted more than 200,000 deaths could happen due to the coronavirus.

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10 Affirmations to Ease Anxious Days During COVID-19

The bad news: As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spiral throughout the globe, the only thing you can control these days is, maybe, your thoughts. The good news: Doing that alone can improve everything: your mood, your blood pressure, your productivity, interactions with others, and your long-term outlook, not to mention your actual ability to fend off (or endure) the new coronavirus.

Here are 10 affirmations to help you ease anxiety during this time.

1. Arthur Ashe 

Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can.

2. Ava Duvernay

What if we believed that everything happens for us, not to us?

3. William Edward DuBois

There is in this world no such force as the force of a man determined to rise.

4. Hallmark card

Sometimes you’ve got to let go of the handlebars and reach up to the sky.

5. Martin Luther King Jr.

We must use time creatively…and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do great things.

6. Anna Deveare Smith

Be more than ready…Start now, every day, becoming, in your actions, your regular actions, what you would like to become in the bigger scheme of things.

7. Nelson Mandela

I don’t ever lose. I either win, or I learn.

8. Tyler Perry

The trials we go through and the blessings we receive are the same thing.

9. Muhammad Ali

Don’t count the days. Make the days count.

10. Misty Copeland

I will forever fight, performing like it’s my last show. And I will love every minute of it.

from Black Enterprise https://ift.tt/2Xe1IDp

Humble's Latest Bundle Is Ready to Fight COVID-19

Conquer COVID-19 Bundle | $30 | Humble

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