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Dear Friend,
Earlier this month, I was diagnosed with COVID19. After spending 5 days in the hospital, I was forced to self-quarantine at home with my husband and 3 kids in our tiny apartment. My husband lost his job too. We have no income and no way to put food on the table for our children.
And my family is not alone. There may be as many as 265,000 unemployed undocumented workers in New York State at the peak of the crisis. Working-class communities of color like mine have the highest number of cases. We are less likely to be able to work from home and are more likely to work in essential service sectors, risking exposure to the virus, or to have lost our jobs.
Foundations and charities are trying to get some cash to families, but our communities need government-scale solutions.
Join me in urging New York to act. Click here to sign our petition.
Other states, like California, have created funds open to all, but when asked about New York helping excluded workers, Governor Cuomo said it would be “irresponsible.” (1) Well, I’ll tell you what’s irresponsible. Leaving families and children to starve or forcing parents to risk their lives and risk spreading this terrible disease to try to find a way to make a buck.
In New York City, data shows Black and Latinx people are twice as likely to die from COVID-19. Communities of color in other parts of the state have also been harder hit than their neighbors. We need to do all we can to protect our health and the health of our communities.
Click here and sign our petition urging Governor Cuomo to create an Excluded Workers Disaster Income Replacement Fund.
Best,
Jertrudis Herrera, NYCC
P.S. If you want to help provide immediate relief, make a donation to the NYCOFI COVID-19 Relief Fund.
(1). https://www.democracynow.org/2020/4/17/headlines/ny_gov_cuomo_rules_out_relief_for_undocumented_residents
