In NYC, working class communities of color still bear COVID’s economic impact: report

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New Yorkers of color and immigrants joined a march through Corona urging the state to raise taxes on billionaires Sunday. Photo courtesy of Daniel Altschuler

New Yorkers of color and immigrants joined a march through Corona urging the state to raise taxes on billionaires Sunday. Photo courtesy of Daniel Altschuler

By David Brand

New York City’s communities of color continue to face a disproportionate economic impact as a result of COVID-19, five months after the illness surged across the five boroughs, a new report finds.

During the last week of July, the organizations Make the Road New York and Hester Street polled 246 low-income immigrants and people of color who had they had previously surveyed in April and found that two-thirds remain out of work and 85 percent say they worry they can’t make their next month’s rent as a result of the COVID-19 economic crisis. Roughly 20 percent reported being harassed by their landlords, the report finds.

The organizations release their report, “150 Days Later: Unemployed and Excluded,” on Tuesday.

Queens resident Rosa Martinez said she has been unemployed and worried about eviction and the health of her children for months. She and fellow Make the Road members called on the state to raise taxes on the ultra-wealthy to fund COVID relief programs. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has resisted the revenue-raising strategy.

“Families like mine have been left without work for months,” Martinez said. “Excluded workers like me urgently need relief.”

The report comes two days after advocates and Queens elected officials, including Assemblymembers Jeff Aubry, Brian Barnwell and Catalina Cruz, and State Sen. Jessica Ramos, marched through Corona to rally support for a tax hike on the ultra wealthy. The event ended at LeFrak City, which is owned by billionaire Richard LeFrak, a Trump adviser and an Andrew Cuomo donor.

“Our people cannot work, they cannot pay rent, and they have been excluded from federal and state relief,” said Make the Road New York Co-Executive Director Javier Valdés. “Our communities urgently need Governor Cuomo to finally take action by taxing billionaires, providing real resources to excluded workers, and canceling rent.”

The report gained immediate traction among Queens leaders, including Rep. Grace Meng.

“Too many New Yorkers and Americans have been left out and left behind,” she tweeted in response to Make the Road and Hester Street’s findings.