MC Digital Edition 3.10.21

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Women Boss up in Businesses Beyond 9 to 5

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Michigan Chronicle

Vol. 84 – No. 27 | March 10-16, 2021

Powered by Real Times Media | michiganchronicle.com

Surviving Sickness and Stigma: Black Michigan COVID-19 Survivors Suffer Worse Outcomes than Others By Sherri Kolade On top of already being disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and having a higher risk of catching the virus, Black COVID19 survivors face other challenges according to a recent University of Michigan (U-M) study released this month. The study, part of the Michigan COVID-19 Recovery Surveillance Study conducted through a partnership with the U-M School of Public Health and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Researchers, want data from the study to inform future response and health equity efforts for the ongoing pandemic as well as future public health crises.

Southfield resident Lia Day is a second-grade charter school teacher and mother of two who juggles hybrid teaching and the day-to-day with her own children. Photo provided by Lia Day

Burnt Out:

Stressed Parents and Teachers Discuss School Openings and Options Amid a Continuing Pandemic By Sherri Kolade

Striking A Balance So many other parents and teachers are looking for that balance, too, trying to ensure that their children and students are in the best learning environment while staying safe during the pandemic.

Time never slows for Warren resident Angela Hicks, 42.

Delvon Mattingly, a Ph.D. candidate studying epidemiology at the University of Michigan School of Health, details how Black people are dealing with the aftereffects of COVID-19 in a recent published study. Photo provided by Delvon Mattingly Major findings from the study, which consisted of 637 surveys from COVID-19 survivors in Michigan, include: More Black than white respondents reported severe or very severe symptoms (73 percent vs. 61 percent) or required an overnight hospital stay (45 percent vs. 28 percent). More Black respondents reported increased social stressors since the start of the pandemic, with 26 percent being unable to pay important bills like mortgage, rent, or utilities (versus 10 percent of white respondents). About 9 percent of Black respondents believed their experiences seeking health care were worse than people from other races, while 19 percent of white respondents believed their experiences were better than people from other races. More Black respondents (23 percent) were afraid to disclose their COVID-19 status to their friends or

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Daylight Saving Time Begins March 14 Remember to set your clocks forward one hour.

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Things moved into hyper speed when COVID-19 hit and impacted her job as a paramedic at a private emergency medical services company in Macomb County. Her 12-hour shift soon became 16 hours.

And just as statewide restrictions are easing up, in-person learning is returning, too, at the Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD). DPSCD and the Detroit Federation of Teachers (DFT) recently announced that in-person learning resumes on March 8. The decision to return was based on science and data, along with closely monitoring COVID-19 infection rates, school officials said.

“I have not stopped working full time,” the loving wife and mother of a 16-yearold son said. “It was -- it is -- just hard. [I was] gone from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. I have to get home, log on to my son’s computer and make sure he did his work.” A Mother on the Frontlines Last year, even getting off work took time. Before she would darken her doorstep, Hicks undressed in her backyard, placed her work clothes inside a garbage bag her husband left outside, and washed them and her tired body. “It was that serious,” the 11-year paramedic said.

Paramedic Angela Hicks, 42, of Warren, is on the frontlines while helping her son with hybrid schooling. Photo provided by Angela Hicks

Hicks, who loves her job, still struggled as a frontline worker. She’s been in too many homes to count where families tested positive for COVID-19. Some made it -- others sadly didn’t. She saw up close the pandemic’s horrific effects, especially when she got the call to go to someone’s house and they’ve been deceased for days from COVID-19. This is all while juggling her son’s 100% virtual schooling. He recently returned to school parttime. Last summer she grew weary.

uation. I’ve known people who died. I’ve seen people who died.”

“I got burned out -- it was just too much and my one concern was not bringing COVID home. My husband had underlying health issues so I would do my PPE,” Hicks told The Michigan Chronicle. “I took it like a life and death sit-

Hicks keeps her head above water by continuing to find work/life balance as the pandemic nears one year, and she puts her family at the forefront when her shift is over.

Hicks (and her husband) received both vaccinations and like many parents who have opted to choose hybrid learning are nervous about potential exposure. “I got an email yesterday (March 3) about somebody in his high school who tested positive,” she said, adding that she hopes her son and more teachers can get vaccinated soon.

DPSCD Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said in a press release that the pandemic infection rates in Detroit were over the five percent mark in November, and DPSCD made the “proactive” decision to suspend in-person learning until rates declined. “Now that the infection rate in the city has consistently been well below five percent, we are ready to welcome our students and teachers back who choose to resume in-person learning and teaching,” Vitti said, adding that employees can opt to take the vaccine. “We look forward to more students and teachers returning to school for in-person learning and teaching.” DPSCD will continue to offer online learning as recent district surveys showed that families and teachers showed a near doubling of interest in returning to in-person schooling in comparison to survey results last September. “The

“I can’t wait to get home,” she said.

decision

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The Evolution of the Black Woman: How Black Women Have Reclaimed and Redefined Femininity

By Megan Kirk

women were shamed for what nature created.

In the 1970s, a new era of film was introduced and put Black women and their sexuality on the main stage. Blaxploitation films starring ‘70s sex symbols like Pam Grier helped to perpetuate stereotypes derived from slavery and evolved over time. However, it also helped to show the individuality and beauty in Black bodies and why Black women would make their mark on society by embracing their womanhood.

Before there was slavery and modern film, there was Sara Baartman. Born in South Africa in 1775 and known for her voluptuous body, Baartman left her homeland under false pretenses and was put on display in “freak shows” across Paris and London. Her body shape was seen as a deformity. Naked and violated, Baartman was the center of attention for attendees to examine the differences in her body compared to European white women. Dying in 1815, Baartman’s remains remained on public display in Paris until 1974. Her remains were returned to her homeland in 2002.

What was once rooted in racism and sexism has now transformed into the reason why more Black women are embracing their femininity and shifting the classic narrative of womanhood. At Ferris

State University, the Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia has an entire display dedicated to the Jezebel stereotype. Noted as seductive, lewd, tempting and alluring, the Jezebel was used as a way to categorize Black female

bodies. Stacked against the white standard for beauty and virtue, Black women were often made to be the opposite of what white women historically presented. With fuller bodies and a naturally infectious personality, Black

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