As the worst coronavirus wave yet sweeps the nation, a new local public service announcement aimed at populations most vulnerable to the pandemic — including people of color and other marginalized groups — attempts to cut through often-conflicting messages about mask wearing.
The ultimate goal of The Mask Up Toledo project, spearheaded by the Toledo-based Center of Hope Family Services and made possible through a grant from the City of Toledo Department of Neighborhoods, is to reduce the spread of the virus among minority populations through education.
The campaign’s premise is epitomized in lyrics written by Tracee Perryman, chief executive officer for the Center of Hope Family Services. Set to an energetic beat and accompanied by a music video, the song asks a simple rhetorical question:
“Your life matters to me. Does my life matter to you?”
“Hearing and seeing on television stories of those who contracted the virus and recovered from it, or of friends and families of those who didn’t survive it, sparked my desire to respond to the needs of impacted individuals and families,” Ms. Perryman said.
And those needs are likely only going to become more pressing as Ohio on Wednesday reported 7,835 new cases of coronavirus. That number was lower than the average new daily caseload for the past three weeks — though still way above where daily caseloads were just four weeks ago. Perhaps more concerning, deaths, hospitalizations, and admissions to intensive care units in the last 24 hours were above average.
There were 123 deaths statewide, compared with the 21-day average of 50; 436 new hospitalizations, compared with the 21-day average of 314, and 52 new ICU patients, compared with an average of 31 per day for the last 21 days, the Ohio Department of Health reported.
Lucas County reported 522 new cases in the last 24 hours and six deaths from the coronavirus, while Wood County reported 149 new cases and two new deaths.
Since the pandemic’s onset in the spring, data have suggested that people of color are suffering as a result of the virus more than their white counterparts. The National Center for Health Statistics, for example, has found that people of color are almost three times as likely to contract coronavirus compared to white people. They are also one to two times more likely to die from the virus.
Ms. Perryman said she believes these disparities are the result of people of color being overrepresented in concentrated areas and in essential professions, as well as being disproportionately marginalized in physical and mental health systems, limiting their access to care.
The strategy Ms. Perryman adopted to push back against such unsettling national statistics prioritized both empathy and self-interest.
“If your life matters to you, wear the mask for me because it can save you,” she sings into the camera as images of children and Toledo’s leaders, include Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz, walk around or dance outside the Toledo Museum of Art, all wearing masks. The music video can be found at this link.
Reginald Temple, vice president, director of community development at Premier Bank and a Center of Hope board member, said that Ms. Perryman’s campaign combats negative stereotypes associated with wearing a mask.
“Her positive energy attributes a freshness and hipness to mask-wearing to reach out to individuals who don’t think it’s a big deal,” Mr. Temple, who is featured in the video, said.
The public service announcement brings individuals from different ages, races, professions, and cultures together to promote a unified message, Ms. Perryman noted. It is intended to target low to moderate-income households, but Ms. Perryman added that the message is specially tailored to resonate with young people.
“Because the symptoms are not as severe, they are less likely to follow the restrictions, not knowing that they can be spreaders of the disease,” she said.
Toledo-Lucas County Health Commissioner Eric Zgodzinski said the campaign was an excellent way of reaching Toledo’s most vulnerable and promoting the message that facial coverings are so important.
“We need to take personal responsibility and listen to people who are trying to tell us what needs to be done,” he said.
The health department is partnering with “Mask Up Toledo” by sharing the project’s content on its website and social media.
First Published December 2, 2020, 4:26 p.m.
