Before we catch you up on the coronavirus news,
we have to talk about the major story
rocking the presidential race.
Bernie Sanders has officially announced
that he is ending his campaign.
Yeah. And I got to say, man,
this is a big one.
And even though Bernie lost two presidential races,
you can't argue that he has had an impact on America.
In fact, I would argue he's had more of an impact on America
than some presidents have.
Like, he's pushed Medicare for All into the mainstream.
He shined a light on income inequality
and how corporations have used money
to rig the system in their favor.
And he showed us all that it's okay
to use our outdoor voice indoors.
Yeah. That's not a thing.
You can use your voice wherever you want.
Like now!
Now, Bernie aside,
coronavirus is still the thing dominating the news right now.
And of course it is. We're all stuck inside.
But before we get into the latest headlines,
let's-let's catch up on some fun news
in our ongoing segment A Ray of Sunshine.
♪ ♪
All right, in our first bit of good news,
Jack Dorsey, the founder of Twitter
and world's richest barista has announced
that he will be donating $1 billion
to help fight the coronavirus.
That's 28% of his wealth.
Yeah. And that's amazing,
using your money to fight coronavirus.
And what better person to fight a thing that's poisoning society
than the inventor of a thing that is poisoning society?
No, I'm just being a hater, man.
This is incredible. Like, for real.
It's incredible because it's generous.
It's a powerful gesture at a moment like this.
And it's also throwing shade,
so much shade at Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos
because they also donated money,
but they donated way, way less than Dorsey,
and they've got way, way more money than Dorsey.
Right? He donated, like, 30% of his net worth,
and they donated less than half a percent of their net worth.
It's like if the check at a restaurant came
and everyone else tips five bucks
and then you buy the waiter a Lamborghini.
That's basically what Dorsey did right here.
"Yeah, yeah. Thanks, the service was great.
"Oh, my friends? Yeah, they're just cheap bitches.
You know how it is."
Now, look, not everyone has a billion dollars,
which is why people around the world
have found all sorts of ways
to try and stop the spread of this disease.
For instance, you know how we're all stressed
about making sure that we keep six feet
between ourselves and other people
when we're out in public?
Well, some amateur inventors
have come up with their own novel solutions.
NEWSWOMAN: This man's wacky social distancing device
is going viral.
He designed his contraption out of tent poles and duct tape
in order to know exactly how far away six feet is.
Okay, that is a super smart idea.
But I will say it could have been a lot easier.
I mean, it's cool to have the disk and everything,
but all you have to do to keep people from coming near you
is just carry a clipboard.
Yeah, and then you just ask people
if they have a few minutes to save the environment,
and everyone will stay at least six feet away.
And keeping people six feet away from you is a great idea
until you need to get close to some people
because they're delivering your food.
So, how do you solve that problem?
Well, two heroes in Missouri,
they totally figured it out.
NEWSWOMAN: A woman in Missouri is taking no-contact delivery
to the next level.
This is video from TikTok user Tracey.
She and her roommate set up a pulley system
to get their pizza without ever having to open their door.
They did it all using a box and some heavy-duty yarn.
They just put the cash in the box,
and they lowered it.
Tell me that is not genius.
Like, what else were they gonna do?
The only other solution would have been
to just have the delivery person leave the food at the door
and then wait 15 seconds for them to leave,
but there's no fun in that.
And what an emotional roller coaster
this must have been for that pizza, hmm?
You don't think about that.
One minute, the pizza was in there all happy, like,
"It's happening! I'm going to heaven.
"I can feel it. I'm floating.
I... No! Why is she eating me?"
(screams) "This is the Bad Place!"
Now, I know what you're thinking.
"Trevor, how am I gonna work off
"all of this pizza that I keep ordering at home
if I can't get to the gym?"
Well, here's a question. Why make it to the gym
when you can have the gym make it to you?
One man not letting his gym closing down
keep him from getting in a good workout,
so he turned to nature.
NEWSWOMAN: Yeah, Zachary Skidmore
got a chainsaw out and went to work.
Built himself what he's calling the lumber-jacked gym
out of logs from his farm.
The lumber-jacked gym includes a bench press,
squat rack, leg press, dumbbells,
yes, even a treadmill,
and it's all made out of wood.
That is impressive.
Because if I built a gym out of a forest,
I wouldn't have energy to work out
because I just built a gym out of a forest.
Now, this guy's attention to detail is truly impressive.
Did you see all the pieces? Got the bench.
He's got... he's got the leg press.
He's got the squat machine.
He's got everything you would find in the gym.
Yeah, he even made the old man in the locker room
who refuses to cover up his balls.
Yeah, that was really intricate.
Like, the detail around the testicles.
That's a lot of wood chipping right there, my friends.
Also, this is a great idea
until the animals discover this forest gym,
because our one saving grace as humans
is that animals don't really work out.
Can you imagine when the bears discover this and get jacked?
It's over for us.
All right, that's it for the good news.
Let's get into the big story of the day.
Let's talk about black people.
They're like white people, but with seasoning.
In America, black people have had a long history
of getting the short end of the stick,
from slavery to Jim Crow
to the criminal justice system
to the Sunken Place.
But when it came to the coronavirus,
it seemed like, for once,
black people were catching a break.
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
Minorities can't catch it. We straight.
-They said that mel... -Say that one more time.
Minorities can't catch it.
Minorities can't catch...
-coronavirus? -Coronavirus. No.
-Who said that? -Why do you say? Why do you believe that?
-Name one. -I don't know,
-but it could happen. -Name one though.
-It could happen. If it... -Name one of us.
Yeah, when this whole pandemic was just kicking off,
many people, many people thought
coronavirus was something
that just didn't involve black people,
sort of like tennis elbow or Tiger King.
Very quickly, we've come to learn
that, not only can black people get coronavirus,
it turns out that black people
are being hit harder than anyone else in America right now.
With the rate of infection increasing in cities
across America, there are alarming new statistics showing
the pandemic is taking an especially heavy toll
on minority communities.
REPORTER: African Americans account for 41%
of COVID deaths in Michigan,
though only 14% of residents.
In Chicago, black residents represent 72% of deaths
but just 30% of the population.
REPORTER 2: Louisiana's population is 32% black,
which accounts for about 70% of coronavirus deaths.
DON LEMON: The disparity in deaths
among African Americans there-- startling.
The data is clear.
Coronavirus is disproportionately impacting
and killing people of color.
That's right. As America has become the epicenter
of the coronavirus worldwide,
black America has become the epicenter
of the virus' worst effects.
And this has become such a major problem
that even President Trump has taken notice.
In the U.S., African Americans are dying
at a much higher rate from COVID-19 than other groups.
President Trump calls it a real problem
and a tremendous challenge.
This is something that's come up.
And I don't mean by a little bit.
I mean many times.
It's a real thing.
Now, why is it that the African American community
is so much-- you know, numerous times more
than everybody else?
Why is it three or four times, uh,
more so for the black community
as opposed to... other people?
It doesn't make sense. And I don't like it.
And we're going to have statistics
over the next probably two to three days.
It almost sounds like Trump is jealous
that black people get coronavirus more
than anyone else. Just because of the way he said it.
"How come black people are getting it and not me?
"What do they have that I don't have?
"Is it swag?
"Is that what it is? Is it caused by swag?"
No, but, look, obviously, I'm joking.
I'm totally joking, man. If anything, it's refreshing.
It's honestly refreshing to see President Trump
so concerned about the black community.
But-but when he says
it doesn't make sense that coronavirus
is hitting black Americans the hardest,
it's actually the opposite.
Right? Because when you look at the systemic
and socioeconomic factors facing black people in America,
it makes complete sense.
You see, overall,
black people are less likely to have health insurance.
Black people are more likely to have preexisting conditions
like asthma and diabetes.
And those things make coronavirus more lethal.
Black people are also more likely
to be in service jobs where you can't work from home
and you have to come into contact
with lots of people every day.
And, of course, there's always just straight-up racism
that affects black people as well.
For example, one study has found
that black people have been less likely
to be offered a coronavirus test by their doctor
even if they're exhibiting the same symptoms as white patients.
Yeah. So while almost every industry around the world
is shut down, it looks like racism
is still considered an essential service.
And racism is even affecting whether or not black people
can protect themselves and cover their faces
when they go outside.
REPORTER: Jody Armour is a law professor at USC Law School.
He and other academics believe wearing masks
can pose a problem for people of color.
This officer right here behind us,
he just followed us from outside,
told us that we cannot wear masks.
There is a presidential order.
There is a state order. And he's just--
And he's following us right now at a store.
We're being asked to leave for being safe.
Come on, man. This is some bullshit.
If black people don't wear a mask in public,
what's gonna happen? People are gonna say
they're endangering public health.
But then if black people do wear masks,
then they're treated like they're preparing for a mission
in Red Dead Redemption or something.
Like, what do you expect black people to do, hmm?
At this point, the only safe way
for black people to cover their faces in public
is to try and disguise themselves as a white person.
And I'm not talking about code-switching.
I'm talking about actually putting on a white person's face
as your mask.
Some people will be suspicious, but it'll work.
"Hey, you look white,
"but there's something off.
Say something only a white person would say."
"Uh, I wish Kamala Harris was back in this race?"
"Checks out. I'll see you at hockey practice, buddy."
So, look, the unfortunate truth is that the black community
is being slammed by coronavirus right now.
But, in a way, it's not because there's anything special
about coronavirus.
It's because any widespread crisis in America
is bound to hit the most vulnerable
and disadvantaged groups the hardest.
And, yes, I know this is depressing.
Especially right now. I mean, you don't want to deal
with coronavirus and racism at the same time.
It's like two Marvel villains coming into one movie.
We don't have enough heroes.
What we do have is real-life black people
showing how resilient they are.
And one of the videos that gave me the most joy
is this viral video of a group of black people
throwing a social distancing block party that--
I won't lie-- brought me a little bit of joy.
♪ Put your pinky rings up to the moon ♪
♪ Girls, what y'all trying to do? ♪
♪ 24 karat magic in the air... ♪
Ah, yes. I remember when the only thing in the air
we had to worry about was 24 karats of magic.
Those were the good old days.
Well, that's our show for today.
Before we go, as always, I would like to remind you
that as America reaches peak corona infections,
the doctors, nurses and first responders in this country
need our help.
So please, go to Thrive Global's FirstRespondersFirst
and donate whatever you can
to help them get the masks, gloves and gowns
that they need to save lives.
And if you want to help in New York City specifically,
please go to the New York Mayor's Fund
COVID-19 Response and donate there.
Stay safe out there.
Wash your hands.
Remember, you can freeze your toilet paper
to make it last longer.
And I'll see you again tomorrow.