COVID-19: Social Inequalities and Human Possibilities

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on individuals, communities, and countries due to social inequalities such as economic development, social class, race and ethnicity, sex and gender, age, and access to healthcare and education. This book explores how these inequalities have led to different rates of infection and death, and how national and international responses to the pandemic have been affected by power and influence inequalities. It is essential for academics, researchers, students, activists, and policy makers to understand the social impact of the pandemic and work towards eradicating the inequalities it has exacerbated.

Format: Hardback
Length: 202 pages
Publication date: 14 March 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

COVID-19: Social Inequalities and Human Possibilities delves into the unequal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on individuals, communities, and countries, a fact often overlooked and suppressed or ignored. Taking a global perspective, this book showcases how the pandemic's effects have varied due to social inequalities, including economic development, social class, race and ethnicity, sex and gender, age, and access to healthcare and education.

Economic inequality between and within nations has played a significant role in the chances of individuals contracting and succumbing to the virus. Developing nations with weak healthcare systems, workers whose jobs cannot be performed remotely, disparities between those with and without access to essential resources like soap and water for handwashing, and the ability to maintain physical distance, all contribute to the unequal impact of the virus. Racial and ethnic minorities face higher death rates from the virus, which has also unequally affected indigenous peoples and urban and foreign migrants worldwide. Inequality is also embedded in national and international responses to the pandemic, as the distribution and receipt of aid are often influenced by demographic and national power imbalances, leading to competition rather than collaboration in ending the pandemic.

In addition to the other titles in Routledge's COVID-19 Pandemic series, this book represents a timely and crucial advancement in knowledge regarding what many perceive as the greatest threat to global ways of being in over a century. As such, COVID-19: Social Inequalities and Human Possibilities is an essential resource for academics, researchers, students, activists, and policymakers interested in understanding and addressing the multifaceted challenges posed by the pandemic.

Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032012780