Our Voices

Jesús Sánchez Meleán

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In Pueblo, Colorado, during this pandemic year, the Hispanic population has suffered grave consequences due to COVID-19. According to the data compiled by the Colorado Electronic Disease Reporting System (CEDRS), between March 2020 and April 2021, Hispanics made up 55.82 percent of positive COVID-19 cases. This figure is well above the 41.29 percent that the Hispanic population represents within the general population in that county.

The CEDRS report details that the Hispanic population infected during the 12-month study period was mainly between the ages of 20 and 59. These age ranges correspond to the young and economically active population. This population works jobs requiring greater interaction with the general public, which explains why they returned such high figures of infection.

As of late, we do not have any conclusive data demonstrating the amount of unemployment that the pandemic caused. However, the number of Hispanic deaths due to the virus have been recorded. This CEDRS data indicates that 31.34 percent of deaths from COVID-19 in Pueblo occurred among the Hispanic population. Understanding the impact of the virus using statistics is helpful to get an overview of the problem.

It is necessary to tell the stories of people who express how their lives have been in danger as a result of the virus. In the current edition, we tell the story of Father Douglas, a Theatine priest, also in Pueblo, who spent three months hospitalized as a result of being infected. Father Douglas is currently recovering the mobility of his arms and legs which were affected by the virus.

In an effort to tell the stories of those affected by the virus, supplemented by statistics and the opinion of experts, we have begun our endeavor in Pueblo. We will continue to make more installments of this series that we call “Our Voices.” We will be touring a large part of the state to be able to transmit the points of view of the Spanish speaking population that resides there.

We thank the Rose Community Foundation, The Colorado Health Foundation (TCHF) and the Colorado Media Project for the support they are providing to the editorial staff of El Comercio de Colorado in order to produce stories for “Our Voices.” These three organizations have shown great commitment to the idea of guaranteeing the Hispanic population access to timely, accurate, and culturally relevant local information about the COVID-19 vaccine.

Thank you very much for trusting us.

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