By: Harrish Thirukumaran
Eleven months after the COVID-19 disease became recognized as a global pandemic in March 2020, the number of Canadians diagnosed with the virus increased daily or have been in high figures. A multitude of factors have been blamed for this steady increase. Throughout this time, the health situation has led to many of us following a set of public health guidelines and orders as one of many efforts to control and combat the disease. These include physical distancing with individuals not part of your immediate household and staying at home as much as possible.
More recently, however, attention has been focused on Canada’s South Asian community, in relation to high COVID-19 case numbers in the Greater Toronto Area and elsewhere in Canada. In Peel Region, where South Asians represent half of its total visible minority population (Statistics Canada, 2017), the community represents nearly half of all confirmed COVID-19 cases in the area. This is something that has affected me personally and generated my own curiosity as a Canadian who has South Asian ancestry, prompting me to write this article to understand this issue and to hopefully educate others on it.
In Peel Region in the Province of Ontario, it was announced that to address the apparent transmission of COVID-19 among South Asian communities, a group of physicians, lawyers, healthcare professionals, business leaders, and volunteers from all backgrounds and faiths have come together to launch the Canadian South Asian COVID-19 Taskforce (Subhan, 2020). This seems to be a solution that has emerged in response to growing public/media debate as to how or whether the behaviour of South Asian communities has enabled them to be at higher risk of contracting and transmitting the virus.
Some have argued that COVID-19 outbreaks in Canada have been associated with South Asian events, such as weddings, and recently, Diwali. There is also a strong sense of family, especially multigenerational families living in the same household, along with hospitality and social gatherings with others that contribute to infections spreading from one family member to others (Chagla et al. 2020, Amato 2020). On the other side of things, these claims have been dismissed as racist against the community and is reminiscent of the blame directed at East Asian communities in Canada and elsewhere for the virus’ spread based on stereotypes like their eating habits (Paradkar, 2020). These arguments are scapegoating South Asians; for example, in Calgary, Alberta, others, such as anti-masker rallies, have contributed more to spreading the virus than South Asians in the city (Amato, 2020). While there may be some in the South Asian community that may socialize irresponsibly or believe themselves impervious to the virus (Paradkar 2020), it is imperative to look beyond just culture and values of the community and towards other factors that may play a more critical role including income levels, unemployment or underemployment, and precarious employment.
The role of income in the spread of COVID-19 is not because it discourages people from obtaining COVID testing, but that it is one of the primary motivations that members of the South Asian community are forced to risk exposure to the virus as part of their frontline jobs in Tim Hortons, Uber or other companies in the service industry and gig economy (Shafiq, 2020).
Regarding the claims that have been circulating against South Asian communities spreading COVID-19 through special occasions like Diwali, then this should have readily applied to the community and others with the Christmas and the holiday season at the end of 2020 in terms of obeying physical distancing guidelines. Indeed, Dr. Priyank Bhatnagar, a Resident Physician in Emergency Medicine at the University of Toronto, stated in an interview that while inviting family for parties and dinners is a cherished tradition in South Asian families during this time of the year, the rising COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have deemed holiday gatherings as simply too risky (P. Bhatnagar, personal communication, December 24, 2020). Furthermore, the weather this time of year does not permit a safe mode of outdoor gathering, and we know that even with 6-feet distancing, COVID-19 easily and quickly spreads indoors. (P. Bhatnagar, personal communication, December 24, 2020). Accordingly, he urges that these communities in need of celebration during the holiday season should do so virtually with family and friends. (P. Bhatnagar, personal communication, December 24, 2020).
While also agreeing that some people in the South Asian community have broken the rules to host social events, with some testing positive for COVID as a direct result and the efforts of the South Asian COVID-19 task force and various healthcare leaders, Dr. Bhatnagar also agrees that other multiple social and economic factors have caused higher cases of COVID-19 among this community as others in the media have similarly commented. (P. Bhatnagar, personal communication, December 24, 2020). He also adds that to tackle the misinformation about COVID-19 and South Asian communities in Ontario and Canada, we must call out these false articles circulating in our social groups online such as Facebook and WhatsApp and share articles from reputable sources such as Health Canada, Public Health Ontario, CBC, or the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (P. Bhatnagar, personal communication, December 24, 2020).
The Office of the Mayor of Brampton was reached out to for an interview with Mayor Patrick Brown to comment on this issue of COVID-19 and South Asian communities in Brampton and Canada.
Interview with Mayor of Brampton, Patrick Brown on the COVID-19 pandemic and South Asian communities
Q. A task force was recently established that is dedicated towards promoting health and safety among South Asian communities in the Region of Peel around COVID-19. It has also been reported that Brampton has emerged as a COVID-19 hotspot, with 58 percent of Peel’s cases being in Brampton from February 2020 to September 2020. As the Mayor of Brampton, what are your thoughts on this taskforce and the role that Brampton could possibly play in promoting health and safety among South Asian communities in the pandemic?
Mayor Brown: “I think it’s great that we have some grassroots efforts whether it’s a South Asian task force or the Muslim task force. There’s a variety of grassroots COVID-19-focused task forces that are looking at ways to help and any help that supplements public health’s efforts is a positive. I would underline though that where we are seeing the transmission is not because people are having parties, it’s because of the nature of the work. You know, we have our largest two sectors in Brampton in transportation logistics and food processing. We have a large warehouse sector too, fulfillment centres, and they are considered essential, so when there are lockdowns they are not affected. If anything, they actually have to increase the workload because they are so busy. So, all these sectors are hiring, they’re buzzing with activity right now, and it is amongst these industrial settings where we have seen the number one source of transmission, according to Public Health and Peel Region.”
Q. There have been issues of racism against East Asian communities in Canada regarding COVID-19 based on their eating habits and others. With the high case numbers in Peel, South Asian communities are being increasingly stigmatized as transmitting the virus due to their socializing habits whether through weddings, visiting places of worship or multigenerational homes. However, others in the media have claimed these issues are due to issues like inequities in healthcare services and delivery in the area and how South Asians are largely precariously employed or essential workers.
Given that South Asians represent half of Peel Region’s total population based on the 2016 StatsCan census, what do you think Brampton and Peel Region needs to do to prevent this newfound risk of COVID-19 racism directed at South Asians and address credible gaps to enhance public health around COVID-19?
Mayor Brown: “Well, I think that initially in the pandemic, there have been issues of stigmatization of racialized minority communities. We know that the South Asian community and Afro-Caribbean community were being hit harder in the pandemic in Brampton and Peel Region. Racialized minorities were being stigmatized and that’s wrong. It’s vulgar and it’s repulsive. If anything, I think that there should have been a level of appreciation across Canada for these pandemic heroes because if you order off Amazon anywhere in the country, you need to thank someone in the fulfillment sector in Brampton despite the fact there have been a number of outbreaks. They have been going to work at the risk to their own health to serve Canada’s supply chain.
Q. There is discussion about enhancing race-based data collection to better address health inequities among South Asian and other racialized communities in policy efforts towards combating COVID-19. Is Brampton or Peel Region open to engaging in race-based data collection to inform a better COVID-19 response among these communities?
Mayor Brown: “So, Peel Public Health does have race-based data collection to make sure that they have a better response, and, frankly, so they can inform those at the provincial health table of these inequities. And I can tell you when it comes to inequities, I am constantly in the media talking about it and let me give you one because you talked previously about health inequities that existed in Peel Region. In Brampton, we have 0.96 hospital beds for every 1,000 residents. The provincial average is 2.19, which means we have less than 50% of the hospital beds per capita that is the provincial average. And that in itself when you look at the hospital being at capacity, of course it’s going to be at capacity. We were at capacity for the last five years in a row. We were at capacity before the pandemic even started and the pandemic has only laid bare the healthcare inequalities that exist in our province. Why should someone in Brampton, in a city that is very diversified have a lower standard of healthcare than a city like Vaughan or London (Ontario). It just doesn’t wash.”
Q. Since you touched on that capacity issue for Brampton, do you believe that the pandemic would be a catalyst towards increasing funding towards healthcare access in Brampton to address not only the health and wellbeing of South Asian communities, but all other communities as well?
Mayor Brown: “It should be. Absolutely, it should be. And you know we declared a healthcare emergency even before the health pandemic began because we saw these inequities, and I hope that this pandemic has laid bare some of the shortfalls in our healthcare system. It’s not universal healthcare when you have one standard in a growing diverse community and another standard in the rest of the country. You know, there has to be some form of equality. And I hope this pandemic has been a wakeup call on those funding bodies.”
Q. Along with sick benefits for essential and frontline workers, I understand that in your capacity as Mayor of Brampton, you have been advocating for an isolation centre in northeast Brampton based on a significant case count originating there. What benefits do you believe this could bring to South Asian communities living in the city in relation to COVID-19?
Mayor Brown: “So, we got some good news from the provincial government on Christmas Eve. We got a letter from the provincial government saying that they would be funding three isolation centres for Brampton. We had asked the federal government about their funding for isolation centres in Mississauga and Toronto, and we were surprised that they would not do one in Brampton. So, we were really encouraged that the provincial government agreed to do so. So, this is going to help because it protects those who do not have the ability to safely isolate and there is many who live in crowded living conditions who can’t possibly afford a hotel room for 14 days by having a hotel nearby, which they can go and self-isolate. It’s a protective mechanism. Voluntary public health is there to assist in testing or to inform if you are no longer contagious to your family and it has proved to be very effective in other countries.
These views from the Mayor are enlightening and should contribute to clarifying the relationship between South Asian communities, other diverse communities and COVID-19. Moreover, his perspective on setbacks in Brampton’s healthcare system should not only re-open public policy debates on the intricacies of universal healthcare or publicly funded healthcare there, but Canada generally as well now and once COVID-19 is under control. As boldly expressed by Mayor Brown, the pandemic has laid bare to the fact that “it’s not universal healthcare where there is one standard for a growing diverse community, and another standard in another part of the country.” Also, it should be noted that his comments have also illustrated that in a way we should enhance the employment situations for essential and frontline workers who are members of South Asian and other diverse communities with actions like paid sick days for their brave contributions during these uncertain times.
Currently, it is encouraging to learn that the Ontario government recently announced on January 21, 2021 that COVID-19 isolation centres are opening during that week in Oshawa and Brampton, demonstrating the urgency of the health situation there and the need for advocacy. This announcement is part of the Province’s investment of up to $42 million under the High Priority Communities Strategy to help people in some of the hardest hit neighborhoods to self-isolate and keep their families and communities safe (Government of Ontario, 2021). As additional help to assist the South Asian community and other diverse communities, Ontario’s High Priority Communities Strategy, to date, has more than 160 Community Ambassadors that have been engaged and over 225 more will be hired to deliver targeted outreach and messages to community members in multiple languages (Government of Ontario, 2021).
Overall, while some in the South Asian community may be blatantly flouting public health guidelines similar to individuals from other communities, it should be recognized that there may be certain luxuries that this community cannot afford or benefit from in order to properly protect themselves from COVID-19. Two factors contributing to this outlook include employment in essential work and living in multigenerational homes. Furthermore, now that we are at the end of the holiday season, it is important to pay equal attention and call out all those who may have disobeyed public health guidelines and rules unnecessarily and better protect diverse communities, like South Asians, from stigmatization during these current times and in future health pandemics. In other words, as done in this article, we must take the time to continue understanding and tackling misinformation on the COVID-19 pandemic directed at the South Asian community and other diverse communities to address it appropriately.
[This article first appeard om the Mosaic Institute website]
Harrish Thirukumaran is a Lead Research Assistant with the Mosaic Institute. He holds a Master of Public Policy from the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy. He also holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a concentration in Public Administration from Brock University. He has policy interests in international affairs, policy innovation, urban policy, as well as mental health policy and how they impact communities and stakeholders.