
It is âa nasty, relentless diseaseâ
Some believe the COVID-19 pandemic isnât being taken seriously enough by people of all ages, especially among Blacks. âWe are still learning about COVID-19,â said Childrenâs Minnesota Infection Prevention Nurse Adriene Thornton.
Black Minnesotans make up at least 21 percent of COVID cases, the highest of any ethnic group. Nationwide, Blacks are disproportionately dying of the disease at higher rates than others as well. âIt is not a hoax,â said Thornton.
According to a nearly 400-page unpublished White House Coronavirus Task Force state-by-state report that the nonprofit, nonpartisan Center for Public Integrity obtained and published last week, Minnesota is in the âyellow zoneâ with three countriesâHennepin, Ramsey and Dakotaâaccounting for 47% of new COVID cases in the state.
Thornton, a regular panelist on the African American Leadership Forumâs (AALF) biweekly series on the diseaseâs impact on the Black community, said last week, âWe donât know the long-term impact of COVID-19. We are still learning how to treat it.
âIt is not [just] older peopleâ even though this group is among the most vulnerable to contract the coronavirus. People of all ages can get infected, she said.
âHow did we get exposed? I donât have the answer,â admitted Charles Johnson-Nixon, whose entire family became infected with the virus. He noted that before he got tested, he often didnât wear a mask in public settings. He and his wife first tested positive for COVID; their three teenage children later got tested and were found positive as well.
The Johnson-Nixon family all spoke on last weekâs panel. âWe kept to ourselves,â said Kristin Johnson-Nixon on their recovery. âWe did have to call some people and let them know,â adding that she still is having âleftoverâ aftereffects from the virus.
âIt was tough,â she stressed. âWe [would] feel better one day, and the next day we would be knocked out.â
âIt would knock you down and youâd not want to do anything at all,â her husband noted. âYou have good days, then it reminded you that you were not altogether there.â
Dr. Simon Noel-Ndely, a University of Minnesota Fairview Medical Center pediatrics doctor, reaffirmed the importance of wearing masks over your nose and mouth as âthe most effective wayâ to not transmit the virus.â
Health experts said if everyone in the country wears a mask, the coronavirus could be controlled perhaps in about two months. âWe know that if everyoneâs face is covered, COVID will not be transmitted from person to person,â reiterated Thornton.
Charles Johnson-Nixon said that he is a believer and learned his lesson: âHaving had COVID and going through it, the last thing I ever wanted to do is put myself in the situation where a large group of people [are],â he said of his concern that too many people seem to not take the virus seriously.
âPeople still donât believe that this is a bad disease,â he explained. âToo many people still think this is just like the flu. I still see people not wearing a mask, not social distancing. This disease is relentless. Itâs just nasty.â
When asked about opening up school buildings this fall, Johnson-Nixon, a middle school administrator, expressed wariness about it. The school population, classroom size, transportation, and installing proper safeguards are among his concerns.
âI have a school with over 900 kids,â he said. âI donât see any safe way of bringing kids back in the fall in the building. We are discussing what we are going to do in the fall.
âWe need to use the science and listen to science, and make the right decision for the kids,â Johnson-Nixon continued, adding that he understands the concerns that parents have with distance learning. Still, he reiterated, âI think putting school back to JanuaryâŠis a much better way to go.â
âIt depends on the school system,â said Noel-Ndely on school openings, but he stressed that if safeguards arenât in place, school kids as well as staff could be susceptible to getting sick. âI would be concerned.â
Thornton said everyone should hold each other accountable for being safe. âWe have to remind each otherâ to wear masks and stay at least six feet away in public, wash your hands and refrain from touching your face. âThis is not the time to take a couple of steps back.Â
âWe have to be responsible and accountable to each other to make sure we donât transmit COVID in the community.â
Charles Hallman is a contributing reporter and award-winning sports columnist at the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.