GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Officials in Michigan is working to assemble a Black Leadership Advisory Council after Gov. Gretchen Whitmerdeclared racism a public health crisisin an executive directive Wednesday.
Lt. Gov. Galvin Gilchrist II, the first Black person to hold that office, said, “We have a responsibility as leaders in a time such as this to act with all of the tools that the people of the state of Michigan have entrusted us to wield,”
He added that there are stark disparities in education, income and health care and those disparities have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Data from the U.S. Census shows Black people make up about 15% of Michigan’s population. Despite that, state reports show Black people made up about 25% of all COVID-19 patients in the state. The data also shows that Black people accounted for nearly 40% of all COVID-19-related deaths.
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