Castro: Latino families are suffering

[TexasTowelie]

By Julián Castro


Latino families are suffering. We are grieving the loss of our loved ones, while at the same time facing severe economic instability and an uncertain future. The pandemic hit close to home for my family when I lost my stepmom, Alice Guzman, earlier this month to COVID-19. It was devastating to lose a loved one and all the more painful because her death, like so many others, could have been avoided if our government had a plan for containing the pandemic.

Now, across Texas, thousands are suffering as a result of failed Republican leadership. Governor Greg Abbott followed Donald Trump’s pandemic response model of “hear no evil, see no evil,” and failed to set in place critical protections to protect families. Due to this lack of leadership, Texas is now one of our nation’s hotspots for COVID-19.

As a result, Latino families across the state are contracting the virus at unprecedented rates. Families like mine are suffering the tragedy of losing a loved one while living in fear of future spread that could jeopardize the health of more of our relatives. In our case, my dad now has COVID-19 and we are left to hope and pray he returns to health.

But the pain from the failed Republican response cuts even deeper than public health. Latino families are struggling to come up with enough money to pay rent and put food on their table. Latino essential workers are risking their lives everyday in order to earn a living. And Latino-owned small businesses are struggling to maintain their operations – many are being forced to close down. This changes the make-up of our communities, further hurts workers who become unemployed and devastates the small business owners who have dedicated their lives to pursuing their dreams.

Read more: https://riograndeguardian.com/castro-latino-families-are-suffering/

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