User:Hallegill/Indigenous People section of the Social impacts of COVID-19 in the U.S.

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted Indigenous settlements (in the U.S.) particularly hard. There are a range of factors that disproportionately impacted indigenous settlements perpetuating poverty, food insecurity, strain on community health, family strain, socioeconomic struggle, and poor physical as well as mental health status. A CDC report revealed that COVID-19 incidence rates were 3.5 times higher for American Indians/Alaska Natives compared to white Americans during the first 7 months of the pandemic.^[1] Intergenerational trauma and structural racism along with the lack of recognition by leadership and governance result in a constantly building allostatic load that results in poor mental health status across the population. Social isolation and lack of community health support during the pandemic contribute to a lack of consideration of the population overall. The social support within the community allows for a collective feeling of strength and community^[2]. The CARES Act and American Rescue Plan Act offered significant funding to Indigenous communities across the U.S, which allowed some tribes to address ongoing infrastructure issues exacerbated by COVID-19, including food security, water access and emergency response.^[3] That being said, there were many rules attached to these funds that it has been difficult to even use it.^[3] On June 21, 2021, tribal members Green, Laura Smith and Leona Gopher protested for better transparency in front of the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council office in Browning, Montana, “I’m tired of what they do to us — it’s disgusting,” Smith said. “And all of our heads count for all the money they get. That’s why I’m down here protesting, because I’m tired of it."^[3] These funds, to the Indigenous populations, serve more like a stack of money tied to the hands of American officials so they can feel satisfied thinking they have helped.^[3] According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, nearly one fifth of Native adults experienced mental illness in the last year and suicide rates are over double that of white youth.^[4] It is predicted that COVID-19 only exacerbated these issues and increased such inequity across the Indigenous populations, especially due to grief from the deaths of elders. Sociologists studying COVID’s effect on indigenous populations have several recommendations for action that needs to be taken for the survival of those populations. Included in their recommendations are, “Invest in Indigenous Community-Controlled Data Infrastructures and Technology to Support Community Capacity, Response, and Resilience," "Involve Indigenous Peoples' Leaders, Activists, and Scholars in the Mainstream Science/Data/Policy Nexus Decision-Making Processes," "Institute Data Access and Sharing Protocols Between Indigenous Peoples and Other Governments and Data Holders," "Require Collection (and Validation) of Indigenous Identifiers or Affiliation (e.g., Nation, Tribe, Ethnicity)," and "Increasing the Number of Indigenous Epidemiologists to Improve Information for Effective Public Health Response.”^[5] Mental Health America employs and advocates for culturally competent, trained mental health professionals to work within the field to support indigenous peoples, and offers further resources for people in need including One Sky Center, WeRNative, and StrongHearts Native Helpline.^[6]