As COVID disproportionately hits Hispanics, community leaders say online learning best
Before the pandemic, Fort Worth resident Roxanne Martinez would wake up early, get her two children ready for the school day and drop them off before heading to work. She worked late, so she relied on her mom to pick the kids up and watch them until she got off in the evening.
But now, because COVID-19 has higher fatality rates for those in vulnerable populations — those with preexisting conditions or who are older than 65 — Martinez said she’d hesitate to risk spreading the virus to her mother. The coronavirus pandemic has halted any sense of normalcy for parents, kids and families returning to school. And Fort Worth ISD kicked off the new school year last week the same way it ended last year: online.
The district previously announced tentative plans to resume in-person classes Oct. 5, but the board of trustees was scheduled to meet Tuesday evening to discuss whether classes will remain online longer. The agenda for the meeting said the board would discuss whether to extend the back-to-school transition process by an additional four weeks.
Under Texas Education Agency guidelines, schools can remain online only for a maximum of eight weeks before they must offer in-person classes as well or risk defunding.
Martinez said for the Hispanic community — especially those in Diamond Hill, a northern neighborhood in Fort Worth — staying online makes the most sense. She said Hispanic grandparents typically have a large role in helping to raise their grandchildren and can even live in the same household.
According to Tarrant County data, the Diamond Hill area is one of the hardest-hit neighborhoods in the county. The 76106 ZIP code has had 1,687 coronavirus cases as of Monday, the second-most in the county. It also had has 29 deaths, the second-most in the county as well.
This is troubling for Martinez because Diamond Hill’s population is mostly Hispanic. According to U.S. Census data, over 80% of the area’s population is Hispanic.
“The multigenerational family unit is such a core piece of the Hispanic community, and I think that’s one of the biggest reasons why [COVID-19] is putting our families at risk,” she said.
While Martinez doesn’t live with her mom, they’re only five blocks away from each other and before the pandemic, they would see each other almost every day. Her mom would not only provide childcare, but she was the first person Martinez would go to when her kids got sick. And Martinez wouldn’t have it any other way, saying it’s just a part of her culture.
Still, moving classes online poses many problems for all parents, and Martinez said there are even more specific to Hispanic families. Some have a language barrier, others don’t have access to the necessary technology and some parents work more than one job. But, Martinez said, these obstacles are only for a little while, and it’s nothing compared to what they’re trying to protect: their families.
“Right now everyone’s just focused on surviving and trying to keep their families safe,” she said.
In Tarrant County, there have been over 40,000 coronavirus cases and 600 deaths reported. While Hispanics are estimated to make up about 30% of the county’s population, they represent the highest proportion of COVID-19 cases in which the race or ethnicity of the patient was reported, comprising 27% of the county’s total. Ethnicity was not reported in 39% of cases.
Hispanics also account for 29% of the county’s deaths, second behind white people, who account for 48%.
According to research conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, COVID-19 has disproportionately affected Hispanic communities across the country. The pandemic has created heightened fear and anxiety in Hispanic families as many face language barriers and limited access to healthcare and health information.
Hispanics also often work front-line jobs in grocery stores, waste management, cleaning and sanitation services, and food delivery, according to CDC research. This makes them more vulnerable to the virus.
In addition, the CDC released a report on Aug. 7 stating that Hispanic children are about eight times as likely as white children to be hospitalized for COVID-19. The CDC says Hispanic children have a higher prevalence of underlying conditions.
Roxanne Martinez believes the pandemic has exposed the disparities her community faces, such as financial, educational and housing struggles.
Rosalinda Martinez, a member of the organization Historians of Latino Americans Tarrant County, said other communities that advocated for going back to in-person learning don’t understand the few resources that many Hispanic households have available to them. During the pandemic, it was made very clear that Hispanics did not have much healthcare at all, she said.
The best way to handle the situation is to allow parents to choose if they want to go back, Rosalinda Martinez said. For the Hispanic community, this would be the best option, she said.
Rosalinda Martinez herself has had distant relatives become infected with the coronavirus who have since recovered. But that experience serves as a reminder that the virus isn’t gone and her community must stay vigilant and continue to follow safety guidelines.
With online learning expected to continue for at least the next three weeks in Fort Worth, Roxanne Martinez said the Hispanic community is not advocating that online learning is better and should be the norm, but that for her family and countless others, it’s the best way to protect an already vulnerable community.
“We know the best place for them is in person, but we’re not willing to risk the health and safety of our kids and our family,” Roxanne Martinez said.
This story was originally published September 15, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
