Coronavirus is hitting Black America at a staggering rate

Many Black people once believed, at the onset of the global pandemic, they were immune to catching coronavirus as it first swept through nations in Asia and Europe.

Not only has that once-humorous assertion been debunked, but the effects on Black communities have been the polar opposite: COVID-19 cases and deaths in African-American communities are increasing at an alarming pace.

COVID-19 is a respiratory disease caused by the fast-spreading virus.

In Milwaukee, nearly half of the 945 COVID-19 infections have been Black patients, according to ProPublica. Of the 27 residents who have died of coronavirus complications, 81 percent were Black people, though the demographic makes up just 26 percent of the city’s population.

READ MORE: Michigan’s Black residents disproportionately impacted by coronavirus

In New York City, one of the epicenters of the pandemic in the United States, cases in The Bronx borough are rapidly rising, reaching 10,765 as of Friday. The Bronx, which is over 43 percent Black, has reported 480 deaths from COVID-19.

As reported by The City, Bronx dwellers have a high rate of asthma, hypertension and diabetes. People with these pre-existing conditions have been especially vulnerable to the virus.

African-Americans have long suffered from said pre-exisiting conditions, due largely to environmental, economic and political factors. Now, cities with large Black populations, like Detriot and New Orleans, have seen its case count grow exponentially. The Detriot Free Press reported that Wayne County, which includes majority-Black Detroit, accounts for 47 percent of its state’s positive cases.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now revealing race-related statistics in regards to coronavirus, but Dr. Camara Jones, who worked with the CDC for 13 years measuring the racial bias in the medical system, feels the growing number of Blacks affected have revealed how much their communities have been ignored over time.

“COVID is just unmasking the deep disinvestment in our communities, the historical injustices and the impact of residential segregation,” Dr. Jones, currently a Harvard University visiting fellow, told ProPublica. “This is the time to name racism as the cause of all of those things. The overrepresentation of people of color in poverty and white people in wealth is not just a happenstance. … It’s because we’re not valued.”

READ MORE: Michigan’s Black residents disproportionately impacted by coronavirus

As of Sunday afternoon, more than 321,700 in the U.S. have been diagnosed with COVID-19, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The country has the highest number of confirmed cases, followed by Spain, Italy and Germany.

More than 1.2 million people have been infected around the world.

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A sale on Disney steelbooks, 25% Nike shoes, a cheap gaming mouse, animal duvets, and more lead the pack of top Sunday deals.

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Meghan Markle’s real name uncovered as baby Archie’s birth certificate goes public

The birth certificate of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s baby, Archie, was made public this week and it may leave some people puzzled.

As reported by Fox News, the document revealed that Meghan’s actual first name is “Rachel.”

That wasn’t the only revelation that caught Royal family followers off guard. The occupation for Markle, who was given the title “Dutchess of Sussex” upon marrying Prince Harry in May 2018, was listed on the birth certificate as “Princess of United Kingdom.”

READ MORE: Meghan Markle drops title after exit from royal family 

According to The Mirror, Markle was technically still a princess, though not by name, following her union. Through her husband, Markle is “Her Royal Highness Princess Henry of Wales,” the British-outlet reported.

The baby’s full name is listed as Archie Mountbatten-Windsor. He was born in Portland Hospital, a private medical center in Westminster that cost $25,000 per night.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and their baby son Archie Mountbatten-Windsor. (Photo by Toby Melville – Pool/Getty Images)

The family is currently residing in Los Angeles as Prince Harry bids to disconnect from his royal family and live a less intrusive life. They had previously lived in Canada after leaving England.

READ MORE: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry reportedly leave Canada for the U.S. 

The couple had originally announced that they were going to “step back” as senior royals as Prince Harry, concerned of his family’s safety, acted on his desire to be “financially independent” from the royal family. His mother, Princess Diana, was killed in 1997 in a car crash while attempting to elude paparazzi.

“My deepest fear is history repeating itself,” Harry stated, as reported by USA Today. “I’ve seen what happens when someone I love is commoditized to the point that they are no longer treated or seen as a real person. I lost my mother and now I watch my wife falling victim to the same powerful forces.”

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Surgeon general warns US of ‘saddest week’ and ‘9/11 moment’

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. surgeon general offered some of the starkest warnings yet Sunday as he braced Americans for the worsening fallout from the new coronavirus, warning “this is going to be the hardest and the saddest week of most Americans’ lives, quite frankly.” The public was advised separately by the nation’s infectious disease chief to “just buckle down” and that the virus probably won’t be wiped out entirely this year.

The number of people infected in the U.S. has exceeded 300,000, with the death toll climbing past 8,400; more than 3,500 of those deaths are in the state of New York.

People move through the streets of the Borough Park section of Brooklyn which has seen an upsurge of coronavirus patients on April 03, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

READ MORE: Americans should wear masks in public, White House recommends

Much of the country is under orders to stay home, and federal officials said that they have seen signs that people are listening to the message about social distancing. But the Trump administration also is also emphasizing that the worst is yet to come for many communities.

“This is going to be our Pearl Harbor moment, our 9/11 moment, only it’s not going to be localized,” Surgeon General Jerome Adams said on “Fox News Sunday.” He added: “It’s going to be happening all over the country. And I want America to understand that.”

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams walks outside the West Wing of the White House on his way to do a television interview with Fox News on March 5, 2020 in Washington, DC. Reports of cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the U.S. have now reached 18 states. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said the coming week is “going to be shocking to some.”

“But that’s what is going to happen before it turns around, so just buckle down,” Fauci said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”

Dr. Anthony Fauci (R), director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, while flanked by President Donald Trump during the daily coronavirus task force briefing in the Brady Briefing room at the White House on March 31, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Fauci said that the rate of new cases will determine whether the United States is putting the worst behind it.

“We’ve seen that in Italy,” Fauci said. “We’re going to hopefully be seeing that in New York very soon and that’s the first sign of that plateau and coming down.”

Fauci also warned that unless the world gets the virus under control, it will “assume a seasonal nature.”

READ MORE: Jemele Hill calls out Kraft’s support Trump amid masks donation

“We need to be prepared that, since it unlikely will be completely eradicated from the planet, that as we get into next season, we may see the beginning of a resurgence,” Fauci said. “That’s the reason why we’re pushing so hard in getting our preparedness much better than it was.”

While most states have adopted restrictions on people’s movement, a few states have declined to order residents to stay home. Adams was asked on NBC’s “Meet the Press” if they should join the rest of the country.

“Ninety percent of Americans are doing their part, even in the states where they haven’t had a shelter in place,” Adams said. “But if you can’t give us 30 days, governors, give us, give us a week, give us what you can, so that we don’t overwhelm our health care systems over this next week.”

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Trump wants NFL to start season on time, teases relief measures for sports leagues

President Donald Trump is eager to get professional sports back playing again.

While the start of the MLB season was postponed to enforce social distancing measures in the time of a coronavirus outbreak, the commander in chief, who has been scrutinized for his handling of the health crisis, wants the NFL season to kick off in September as planned, according to ESPN.

Trump reportedly made the comment during a Saturday conference call with top brass of multiple major league sports. Later that day he gave remarks envisioning life beyond worries of catching COVID-19, the disease caused by the fast-spreading virus, with spectators filling sports stadiums.

“I want fans back in the arenas,” the President said in a daily White House briefing on the epidemic. “And the fans want to be back, too. They want to see basketball and baseball and football and hockey. They want to see their sports. They want to go out onto the golf courses and breathe nice, clean, beautiful fresh air.”

READ MORE: Ex-NFL player trades in helmet for scrubs to combat COVID-19

Commissioners and executives of the NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, WNBA, UFC and NASCAR, among other professional sporting leagues, were said to have dialed in to the conference call with Trump. Outside of discussing timelines for organizations to resume operations, Trump raised the possibility of extending incentives intended for the entertainment industry to the sports world to help address financial challenges, ESPN reported.

The NBA suspended its season in March after multiple players had fallen ill of coronavirus. Soon after the MLB and NHL followed suit.

READ MORE: Simone Biles hesitant to compete in 2021 Tokyo Olympics

Sports and government officials are uncertain when any of the games can resume. California Gov. Gavin Newsome is doubtful any stadium gatherings will be happening by September. He told reporter Saturday he is “not anticipating” sports to resume in The Golden State in the coming months.

“I’m not here to second-guess anybody, but I am here to say this: our decision on that basis, at least here in the state of California, will be determined by the facts, will be determined by the health experts, will be determined by our capacity to meet this moment, bend the curve and have the appropriate community surveillance and testing to confidently determine whether that’s appropriate,” Newsome said.

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