Police brutality against Blacks in the United States and ensuing protests: Implications for social distancing and Black health during COVID-19

ABSTRACT

The pandemic of respiratory disease spreading from person-to-person, named “coronavirus disease 2019” (abbreviated “COVID-19”), presents a public health emergency of international concern. This pandemic is occurring during renewed attention to the persistent issue of police brutality against Blacks in the United States. Protests have ensued to highlight perceived and observed injustice against minorities, particularly Black people. Concerns arise that these protests may complicate efforts to adhere to social distancing and increase risks of COVID-19 exposure among Black persons, who are already disproportionality affected by COVID-19 outcomes due to systemic barriers within the healthcare system and society. This article discusses police brutality against Blacks in the United States and subsequent protests, considerations for social distancing and racial disparities in health during COVID-19, and the need for policies to ensure fair and equitable enforcement of social distancing mandates. We also discuss the need for policies to improve access to COVID-19 testing, diagnosis, and management among underserved and minority communities.

KEYWORDS:

• Coronavirus
• COVID-19
• police brutality
• African Americans
• public health

Declaration of interest statement

The authors report no potential conflict of interest relevant to this article.

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Funding

The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.