Disproportionately Affected: Race, COVID-19 and Accountability

The reporting is clear that Chicagoland’s Black and Latino communities have borne the brunt of COVID-19 related deaths. What role do city and state officials, nursing homes, safety-net hospitals and residents play in stopping the spread of COVID-19 in Black and Latino communities? 

Join WBEZ’s Race, Class and Communities senior editor Alden Loury as we examine what needs to change to mitigate the pandemic’s disparate impact on these communities. We will discuss the current COVID-19 response of government, nursing home, and safety-net hospital leadership, and what future improvements can be made. We will also discuss how racial equity factors into the way that we’ve responded to COVID-19 in Chicago and Illinois at large. 

Viewers will have opportunities to ask Dr. Allison Arwady and Candace Moore questions and share stories about how COVID-19 has impacted Chicagoans’ lives.

More about the story

50 Lives in 4 Zip Codes focuses on the stories behind 50 Chicago COVID-19 victims spread across 4 zip codes around the city. 

The 60649 ZIP code comprises the mostly Black South Shore community. As of August 8, it had the highest COVID-19 death rate in the city, with 123 people dead — roughly 27 for every 10,000 residents, according to city of Chicago figures. 

The 60623 ZIP code encompasses the mostly Latino immigrant neighborhood of Little Village and the mostly Black neighborhood of North Lawndale. As of August 8, more than 450 per 10,000 residents had tested positive and 154 had died. 

The 60610 and 60611 ZIP codes comprise the Gold Coast and Streeterville area, predominantly white and affluent areas. As of August 8, these neighborhoods had one of the lowest COVID-19 death rates in the city.