Narratives and dynamics repeated in the county frequently imply that people in need in the county are Black and Latino. When I saw the diversity of people collecting food at a recent distribution it made me realize that I’d internalized some of that rhetoric. Even during a pandemic and related contraction of jobs I’m ashamed to say I was surprised by the full diversity of people coming to receive food. I’ve since wondered about our social services – I don’t think that we’re doing enough to help people with need, and have wondered why there hasn’t been more urgency. I think many people here associate need with Black and Latino residents and think of people with some economic needs as undesirable – “they should just live somewhere else.” I think racism is part of why we don’t do more to help people, and that’s wrong, and hurts everyone.
