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In the essay, Vang also writes about the rising racial hate and violent attacks against Asian-American and Pacific Islanders in America and around the world as they are blamed for the COVID-19 health crisis, which was first identified in China. A microscopic virus was replaced with a recognizable target. And once again, in this pandemic, anti-Asian sentiment has turned us into a faceless, invasive peril to be extruded from this country, he writes.
The hate incidents, which included the murder of 84-year-old Thai immigrant Vicha Ratanapakdee in San Francisco, are the latest in a troubling spate of attacks and discrimination since the COVID-19 pandemic came to the United States last year.
Poll: Small Business Will Continue to Face Closures in 2021 Due to COVID
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It may be a new year, but many small businesses are still reeling from unparalleled obstacles caused by COVID-19. Many of them are now deliberating how they will survive during the pandemic. And regrettably, the picture may get bleaker before it gets brighter. That could particularly be true for Black businesses who have and remain among the most devastated among smaller establishments affected by the crisis.
A new poll by the advocacy group Small Business Majority shows small business owners of color continue to face closures nearly a year into the pandemic. They keep facing major revenue losses. As such, many have found it hard to stay solvent. Some 32% have cut employee hours and 24% have shut down. Sixty percent have not replenished their headcount to pre-pandemic levels after cutting staff last year.