Abbott’s pandering policies endanger Latinos, businesses
Gov. Greg Abbott’s lifting of the mask mandate has deadly health risks for Latino families, their economic mobility and the state’s economy. The decision is not an isolated case of callousness from the state’s leadership and the inequities toward people of color and low-income workers.
Scapegoating immigrants to divert the public’s attention from Abbott’s new mask policy added even more insult to injury.
Undocumented immigrants give more to our economy than they take. They risk their lives daily in essential areas of our economy — and their caregiving for our loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic often goes unacknowledged and unrewarded.
Texas is the only state where Latinos account for more than half of all COVID-19 deaths; they are dying at a rate 3.5 times higher than white non-latinos. Latinos are front-line workers in farms, meatpacking plants, construction, hospitality, food service and health care, and they are experiencing severe financial losses and poor health. For them, securing food, paying bills, covering rent and child care, and providing health care for their families are constant anxieties.
Latino-owned small businesses
— the fastest-growing owner sector of small-businesses in the nation — have suffered disproportionate devastation throughout the pandemic. They’ve struggled to acquire equitable support from the COVID-19 Paycheck Protection Program, which offers a chance for economic recovery and bringing back full-time jobs. Most of their employees are Latinos. These businesses demand financial support, vaccination for employees and effective public health guidance — not partisan political decisions — to transition to full business operation
February’s winter storm wreaked financial pain on millions of Texans — but it disproportionately struck people of color and low-income workers. The storm may have cleared; however, for many, the detrimental effects of the pandemic on their health and finances are far from over.
How did Abbott respond to this crisis? He quickly appeared on “The Sean Hannity Show” to scapegoat the Green New Deal for the state’s energy problems.
The need for pre-pandemic human capital investments that focus on Latino economic mobility are well-documented: Latinos comprise 62 percent (or 3.2 million) of Texas’ 5.2 million uninsured population, which includes more than 2.5 million adults and 674,000 children.
Many Latino workers are concentrated in industries heavily impacted by COVID-19 where health insurance is neither available nor affordable. Despite overwhelming support for Medicaid expansion from health professionals, businesses and economists, Abbott and legislative leaders continue to deny health and financial security to millions of Texans.
Latinos represent a critically important human capital asset for the state’s economic prosperity. Their contributions to the growth of the U.S. population and labor force include more opportunities for housing, small-business growth, public education, college enrollment, tax revenue and consumer markets. Yet, poor health care, death, job instability, evictions, low educational achievement and business losses are weakening this population.
Nonprofit organizations such as Texas 2036 have a simple vision for our state: Make it the best place to live and work. The vision for achieving this is for every Texan to move beyond partisan, regional and generational politics. Such groups advocate that data and research must drive our focus on issues that matter to Texans and target gaps impacting the most vulnerable. They propose that population growth, education outcomes, job security, health care and poverty are major issues that require concerted attention and solutions.
Latino advocates and allies describe a similar future for their families: The Texas Latino Family Economic Blueprint established in 2017 by the Texas Latino Policy Symposium. It calls for equitable human capital investments and candidly addressing institutional racism, and other political and policy barriers to achieve success.
Abbott’s scapegoating repeats the legacy of state political leaders using red-meat rhetoric. It is consistent with most of the priorities expressed by Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. The governor’s red-meat decision to undo statewide face mask orders disproportionately risks the health and lives of Latino families.