COVID-19–Related Discrimination Among Racial/Ethnic Minorities and Other Marginalized Communities in the United States

Abstract

Objectives. To determine the prevalence of COVID-19–related discrimination among major US racial/ethnic groups and estimate associations between discrimination, race/ethnicity, and other sociodemographic characteristics. Methods. We conducted a nationally representative online survey of 5500 American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Black/African American, Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, Latino (English and Spanish speaking), White, and multiracial adults from December 2020 to February 2021. Associations between sociodemographic characteristics and COVID-19–related discrimination were estimated via multinomial logistic regression. Results. A total of 22.1% of the participants reported experiencing discriminatory behaviors, and 42.7% reported that people acted afraid of them. All racial/ethnic minorities were more likely than White adults to experience COVID-19–related discrimination, with Asian and American Indian/Alaska Native adults being most likely to experience such discrimination (discriminatory behaviors: adjusted odd ratio [AOR] = 2.59; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.73, 3.89; and AOR = 2.67; 95% CI = 1.76, 4.04; people acting afraid: AOR = 1.54; 95% CI = 1.15, 2.07; and AOR = 1.84; 95% CI = 1.34, 2.51). Limited English proficiency, lower education, lower income, and residing in a big city or the East South Central census division also increased the prevalence of discrimination. Conclusions. COVID-19–related discrimination is common, and it appears that the pandemic has exacerbated preexisting resentment against racial/ethnic minorities and marginalized communities. Efforts are needed to minimize and discredit racially driven language and discrimination around COVID-19 and future epidemics. (Am J Public Health. 2022;112(3):453–466. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306594 )

Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Mental Health and Mental Health Care During The COVID-19 Pandemic

“…We also show that Hispanic respondents’ mental health was the most consistently harmed during the pandemic, with their disadvantage relative to White respondents in particular remaining throughout the study period and being demonstrably higher for most of the pandemic period compared to the mental health disadvantage of other respondents. During 2020–2021, Hispanic people in the USA faced high levels of deportation and family separation within their communities; continued discrimination from police, health care workers, educational organizations, and employers; political rhetoric that painted them as dangerous outsiders; and heightened risk of infection of death from COVID-19 with few protective resources [ 7 , 9 , 32 ]. Our study suggests that this translated into increased mental health issues for this group, and future research should continue to track this disparity and whether it lessens or widens moving forward.…”

“…A Pew Research Survey in June 2020 found that four in ten US adults reported it was more common for people to express racist views towards Asian Americans since the pandemic began [ 31 ]. Supporting this, a study from December 2020–February 2021 found that racially/ethnically minoritized people reported high rates of COVID-19-related discrimination, with the highest rates among Asian American adults [ 32 ]. The authors concluded that the pandemic intensified preexisting prejudice and discrimination against communities of color in the USA.…”

“…A study by Bor and colleagues [ 30 ] found that when police kill unarmed Black people, there is a subsequent increase in the number of poor mental health days reported by Black adults. The pandemic was itself possibly a source of racial trauma, given the racialized differences in risk for negative outcomes, and the pandemic occurred within the context of increased racial discrimination and a cumulative series of other potentially traumatic events [ 20 , 30 – 32 ]. Just 2.5 months after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic, George Floyd, a Black man, was violently killed in Minneapolis by a police officer.…”

“…As a racialized stressful event with particular salience for Asian people, on March 16, 2021, a White man committed a series of mass shootings at three spas and massage parlors in Atlanta, killing eight people including six Asian women. Hispanic groups have also experienced heightened discrimination during the pandemic due to a political environment that stoked fear of “outsiders” [ 28 , 32 ]. As previous research has indicated, both Hispanic and Asian people, regardless of their immigration status, are negatively impacted by anti-immigrant stigma [ 33 ], which was likely especially pronounced during the pandemic period [ 32 ].…”

“…Hispanic groups have also experienced heightened discrimination during the pandemic due to a political environment that stoked fear of “outsiders” [ 28 , 32 ]. As previous research has indicated, both Hispanic and Asian people, regardless of their immigration status, are negatively impacted by anti-immigrant stigma [ 33 ], which was likely especially pronounced during the pandemic period [ 32 ].…”