COVID-19, the LGBTQIA+ Community, and Public Policy

Foreword, Erik Bergrud

Preface

Acknowledgments

Contributor biographies

1. An International Pandemic, Misinformation, and Policy Harms

Christopher Surfus

2. The Policy Process

Wallace Swan

3. The Civic Culture Reconfigured

Wallace Swan　

4. LGBTQIA Issues Facing the New Administration: Employment, Medical Care, Personal Finances, and Hunger

Lorenda Naylor

5. Impacts of the Pandemic on the Most Vulnerable Sectors of the LGBTQ Community

Al C. Johnson-Manning

6. Jobs for the LGBTQIA+ Community

Wallace Swan

7. Immigration, COVID-19 and the LGBTQIA Community

Wallace Swan

8. LGBTQ+ Mental Health and COVID-19

Wallace Swan

9. COVID-19 and the Impact on LGBT Disabled Americans

Christopher Surfus

10. Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the LGBTQ Prison Population

Dallas S. Drake

11. COVID-19 and Substance Abuse for LGBT

Claire Burgess, Ankur Srivastava and Abigail Batchelder

12. American and Canadian Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on LGBTQIA Businesses

Wallace Swan

13. The Pandemic’s Impact on LGBTQ Centers and Service Organizations

Al C. Johnson-Manning

14. The LGBTQIA Community Effort to Define SOGI: State-by-State Summary of Data Collection

Wallace Swan

15. From SOGI (Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity) Data Collection to Vaccine Promotion: The Journey of LGBTQ Health Activism During COVID-19

Adrian Shanker

16. The Minnesota Experience

Jeremy Hanson Willis

17. Utilizing State Level Risk Factor Data to Analyze COVID-19

1. Risk: Impact Among LGBTQI+ Pennsylvanians

Christina Graham, Jennifer Keith, Adrian Shanker, Mara Aussendorf, Katie Suppes

18. Impacts of the Pandemic on African American, Latino, Asian American/Pacific Islander LGBT　Populations

Dallas S. Drake and Wallace Swan

19. Arm in Arm: LGBTQ+ COVID-19 Vaccine Equity & Coalition-building

Kaylin C. Gray and Mardell J. Moore

20. Representative Bureaucracy as a Tool for Addressing

1. LGBTQ Inequities Highlighted by the Pandemic

Jennifer Hooker

21. Public Healthcare Policy Needs More than a Vaccine

Paula Overby

22. Reclaiming Our Time: From Discrimination to Dignity

Christopher Surfus

23. Conclusion

Appendix 1 - LGBTQ Youth Adults and Homelessness

Appendix 2 - Effects of COVID-19 on Twin Cities LGBTQ Businesses

Appendix 3 - LGBT Nonprofit Sustainability During COVID-19

Appendix 4 - Fenway Institute

Appendix 5 - Pandemic Questionnaire- Health-Cover-Letter

Appendix 6 - State and Territory Questionnaire

Appendix 7 - Tabulation of Questionnaire Responses

Appendix 8 - Racial, Ethnic, and SOGI Section of Oregon COVID-19 Data Form

Biography

Wallace ("Wally") Swan, MPA, MAPA, and DPA, (he/him) has taught public policy, administrative ethics, public and non-profit finance and organization theory at Western International University, University of St. Thomas, Metropolitan State University, Nova Southeastern University, and has served on the faculty of University of Electronic Science and Technology of China. He currently is a Contributing Faculty Member in the Master's and Doctoral programs at Walden University and has served as an Adjunct Instructor at Hamline University. He has held city-wide elected office at the Minneapolis Board of Estimate and Taxation and is currently a member of the board of the LGBT Advocacy Action Section of the American Society for Public Administration.

"This book could not be timelier. While LGBTQ+ communities have long experienced inequities, the COVID-19 pandemic has both exacerbated longstanding inequities and created new ones. Policymakers and administrators must substantively address these issues, and to address this need, Wallace Swan has brought together an authoritative group of authors writing on key topics linking the pandemic and LGBTQ+ equity—from the policy process and immigration to intersectionalities and representativeness. Anyone seeking to understand the administrative, policy, historical, and socio-economic dimensions of COVID-19’s effects on LGBTQ+ communities should read, cite, assign, gift, and use this book." - Sean McCandless, University of Illinois at Springfield, USA

"COVID-19, the LGBTQIA+ Community, and Public Policy provides a comprehensive examination of the pandemic, its impact on the LGBTQIA+ community, and various public policy implications that strike at the heart of public policy, public administration, and public service. Unfortunately, those that suffered the most during the pandemic were those communities that have historically been disadvantaged, dishonored, and marginalized. Focusing on the LGBTQIA+ community, this text adds an in-depth focus on this group of people and how they have been impacted by the pandemic and various policy failures from multiple levels of government. Contributors to this volume provide an inclusive and diverse examination of the nuances pertaining to identity of group members by what Johnson-Manning addresses as subsectors of the LGBTQIA+ community (including: youth, elderly, HIV+, transgender), but what I refer to as categories of difference (age, sex, gender, ability, race, nationality, etc.) and their intersectionalities (in a global context) that in many ways amplify and compound the impacts of the pandemic on members of this community, particularly in terms of vaccine equity, but also in almost all areas of daily life (health care, mental health, employment, availability of quality services, food and financial security)—all largely the result of policy failures and paths not taken in the policy process. Fortunately, contributors point to these failures and identify potential opportunities to move forward and propose paths forward that include innovative social, cultural, political, and public policy solutions with potential for or direct evidence indicating their possible success. Among the many strengths of this edited volume is the coverage of collective action through community organizations, the nonprofit sector, and coalition building, all critical aspects of civic engagement and fostering and enhancing social equity, diversity, inclusion, and ethical practice in public administration, public policy, and public service. While the impacts of the pandemic are not all known yet, this text provides the most up to date account and analysis of many of the known impacts of the pandemic on the LGBTQIA+ community. The diversity, depth, and breath of coverage of topics in this text provide an excellent resource." - Jose Irizarry, University of Illinois Springfield, USA

"An excellent resource for understanding how COVID-19 exacerbates long-standing inequities LGBTQIA+ communities face. Wallace Swan assembles an impressive lineup of authors detailing timely SOGI perspectives and data. This volume contributes to critically important conversations on how policy and administration can better address disparities for a more equitable public service." - Nicole M. Elias, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York

"Wally Swan is an unsung hero—He has worked for decades to raise the visibility and status of LGBTQ+ research in the fields of Public Policy and Administration. The range of subject matter experts contributing to this edited volume demonstrates the complexity of intersectionality, while capturing the pulse of marginalized populations. Data-driven discussions are complemented with powerful stories of stigma and resilience. This book is a call to action to improve policy decisions through sexual orientation/gender identity (SOGI) data. Authoritarianism looms in the shadows as an undercurrent of hate is being manipulated for the next election cycle. This book further highlights the need to remain vigilant against the backsliding and erosion of fundamental, yet fragile, rights." - Heather Wyatt-Nichol, University of Baltimore