DC Auditor Kathy Patterson gave generously of her time to discuss two new Covid-19 reports, just issued by her office, on We Act Radio’s “Community thru Covid.” She reviews specifics of the reports, methods used, what we still don’t know, and what the District can do better in terms of gathering and sharing data and improving mitigation policy. FB link below; audio here —

Here are links to the reports from the DC Auditor:

DC’s Covid 19 Data Reporting, issued 11/23 (REPORT — read on-line or download)

DC’s Mitigation Policy During the Pandemic (REPORT — read on-line or download)

Also discussed mentioned in Ms. Patterson’s remarks:

Talus Analytics Project, providing “data solutions for messy problems.”

Resolve to Save Lives, which “works to help governments and civil society implement scalable, proven strategies…to prevent deaths from cardiovascular disease and epidemics.” See also Prevent Epidemics interactive maps.

New York Times interactive tool (no subscription necessary for pandemic information)

In addition, see the links within the District Auditor’s reports above.

Two maps show unanswered questions:

Why Manassas?

And what, exactly, is causing higher case rates in Wards 4, 7, and 8?

We might guess, says Ms. Patterson, but data do not yet show why case rate is higher in some areas of DC but death rate so much higher in Wards 7 and 8. Here are two sets of correlations — % of population with health insurance and % of population with high school diploma (data described in detail in the Mitigation report, page 23):

Future reports will endeavor to get more answers, so that policies may be improved.

Video/audio begins around 5 minute mark in this (unedited) Facebook Live program.

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Covid “Map the Truth” Project

Social Justice “Map the Truth” is a “response to the rampant rise of toxic disinformation and hate-based bigotry witnessed amid this pandemic.” The project invites us to “Take a journey and read this as you would a roadmap so that it takes you through a journey of learning, and unlearning. Engage with the social media toolkit to pass on shareable graphics far and wide. The first step to tackling hate is always to open our doors to conversations centered in love, and in one another — together.”

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Holiday/Observance Reading

Visit Reflection Press for information and some free downloadable materials related to When a Bully Is President: Truth and Creativity for Oppressive Times by Maya Gonzalez.

Here is the fuller reading of the book, with permission of the author, by Kymone Freeman.

See also WeLuvBooks.org for the other publication mentioned in the video — The Great Kite was inspired in part by the work of Maya Gonzalez and Reflection Pres.