Stimulus Checks, Twice as Much Needed by Latinos and Other People of Color Amid COVID-19

By Joshua Summers First Posted: Feb 27, 2021 09:15 PM EST

The COVID-19, a novel disease that caused the global pandemic has taken so much toll on humanity, as it urged the halt and limited response of every government in sustaining the daily lives of their constituents. In the United States, NBC News reported that forty percent of Latino and half of the Black community is counting on the round of government financial assistance or stimulus checks to get by.

NBC News furthered that the current administration of the United States is seeking a large COVID stimulus relief package, everyday financial needs which are based on race, ethnicity, and gender.

The survey

Yahoo! News reported that the new survey from CNBC and Acorns Invest in You suggested that against the 40 percent of Latinos and half of the Black community are expecting the stimulus checks, only twenty-two percent of white respondents in the survey only felt the same level of financial anxiety. On the other hand, Yahoo! News added that twenty percent of White Americans who responded in the survey said that they don't need stimulus checks, noting that the federal government should give the money to someone else who needs it.

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities mentioned that the impacts of the pandemic and the economic fallout have been extensive but are dominant among Latino, Black, indigenous, and immigrant households. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities added that the impacts reflect harsh, longstanding inequities, in education, employment, housing, and healthcare which is usually anchored on racism.

However, NBC News pointed out that those who need financial assistance amid the COVID-19 pandemic are less likely to receive it on time. NBC emphasized that 76 percent of the White community claimed that they have received at least one COVID-19 aid payment from the government. On the other hand, 67 percent of Latinos and 65 percent of Blacks say that they have received funding.

Expenditures

According to the Rescue Plan released by the White House, the Biden administration will provide support to communities that are struggling amid COVID-19 through supporting their small businesses especially those who are owned by the entrepreneurs from the people of color. The Rescue plan furthered that the administration also pledged to protect the jobs of the first responders, transit workers, and other essential workers the United States depend on.

The survey also revealed that the multiplicity of the respondents spent their stimulus checks on their everyday expenses. However, Yahoo! News furthered that a higher proportion of Latinos and Blacks spent their funding in paying rents or mortgages compared to Whites. Moreover, 27 percent of Latinos spent the stimulus checks on housing payments which is the higher proportion of any groups in the survey.

Laura Wronski, Science Research Scientist from Survey Monkey noted with NBC News that the latest data demonstrate that Latinos, Black, and other people of color are in a much more precarious financial position -- meaning that stimulus checks are needed more by these groups.