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As we write, COVID-19 is exposing the depths of racial inequities in health among people of color in the United States. As of June 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 21.8% of COVID-19 cases in the United States were African Americans and 33.8% were Latinx, despite the fact that these groups comprise only 13% and 18% of the US population, respectively. In a report of hospitalized patients, 33% were African Americans, despite representing only 18% of a catchment area population. The numbers have changed throughout time, but the disproportion has been consistent across the United States (Tai et al. 2020). Unsurprisingly, initially speculations as to race differentials in excess morbidity, hospitalization, and mortality focused on genetics, lifestyle, and preexisting conditions. However, it is now clear that genetics is not an explanation, and if anything, the genetic disadvantage is mostly pointed toward European-derived groups. “Life-style” is a risk but is related to the position of the poor and communities of color within larger political and social systems. They are more likely to be on the front lines, so-called essential workers, providing services during the pandemic and are thereby at increased exposure. Similarly, preexisting conditions such as obesity and heart disease are important risk factors, but these too are the result of racial inequalities in access to health care, nutrition, and also to the prior noted stresses of racism (Graves 2020).