Racism and health: Three core principles

Profound racial inequities were entrenched in crucial domains of American life long before COVID‐19. In the wake of the pandemic, these preexisting disparities deepened. Housing offers an arresting example. In 2019, just before the onset of the pandemic, 46% of renter households were paying more than 30% of their income toward rent, and nearly a quarter were spending more than half their income on housing. Black and Latinx renters were hit hardest: 54% of Black renters and 52% of Latinx renters were cost burdened (i.e., spending disproportionate shares of their income on rent) compared with 42% of White renters. The pandemic exacerbated the financial struggles of renters. By September 2020, 9.7% of Black renter households and 8.7% of Latinx households (compared with 4.4% of White renter households) reported that they were “very likely” to be evicted in the next two months. By March 2021, one year after the COVID‐19 pandemic was declared a national emergency in the United States, roughly 29% of Black renters and 21% of Latinx renters had fallen behind on rent compared with 11% of White renters. (author introduction) #HES4A