A coalition of organizations is displaying mobile billboards with stories of women impacted by the coronavirus pandemic demanding senators to pass a COVID-19 relief bill with expansive and inclusive economic benefits.
The billboards focus on women working on the front lines of the COVID-19 crisis with an emphasis on Black and Latinx women overrepresented in low paying jobs, subsequently placing them and their families at higher risk for infection, according to a release sent to Blavity.
The billboards are targeting Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Republican leaders who they say failed to take action on additional and much needed COVID-19 relief.
“Women and their families are the essential core of the workforce, yet, despite incredible need, have been left out in the cold by a Senate that has failed to do its fundamental job: act on behalf of its people,” We Demand More Coalition said.
“Women who are historically and systematically marginalized are disproportionately bearing the impact of this virus, while being left out and left behind by their leadership," they added.
More than half of essential workers are women and they also make up the majority of healthcare staff infected by the coronavirus.
According to a study conducted by LeanIn.Org and SurveyMonkey, Black women are nearly twice as likely as white men to report they've been laid off, furloughed or had either their hours or pay reduced because of the pandemic.
Women were also more likely to report they wouldn't be able to pay for their necessities for more than a month if they lost their income.
Additionally, trans women are experiencing high levels of unemployment and delays in medical care as they continue to battle transphobia and transmisogyny in the workplace.
With women bearing the brunt of the pandemic and its effects, the coalition is hoping that by calling out specific senators, the next relief package will include economic relief for women and their families, stronger healthcare access, strengthened state governments and resources to ensure safe and fair elections.
Although previous relief packages have included unemployment benefits, investments in public health and relief to small businesses, the coalition says this is only a fraction of the public's needs.
The billboards will be intentionally placed in the home states of McConnell, Thom Tillis, John Cornyn, Joni Ernst, Cory Gardner, Martha McSally, David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler. They will also display the number of We Demand More petition signatures from the targeted senator's state, the time elapsed since the House passed the HEROES Act and a message demanding they pass additional COVID-19 relief.
The mobile billboards will arrive in Washington D.C. on July 20, the same day senators are expected to return to the hill.
