A Latina woman with her head in her hand, exhausted.
Immigrant and Limited English Proficient Communities

COVID-19 Survivor Impact Briefs 

The National Resource Center for Reaching Victims conducted a series of 
listening sessions to unearth the impact the COVID-19 health crisis is 
having on underserved victims of crime and better resource the crime 
victim services field to respond to those needs. 

This brief summarizes the issues and strategies that emerged from 
listening sessions on immigrant and Limited English Proficient (LEP) 
survivors. 

Introduction 

Immigrants and Limited English Proficient individuals are being affected by COVID-19 in 
many ways. We at the National Latino Network for Healthy Families and Communities (NLN) and 
our friends at the Asian Pacific Institute on Gender Based Violence (APIGBV) are seeing 
communities infected and experiencing severe illness with no access to medical care or be the 
targets of hate crimes. Some are being left out by the lack of language access in medical 
settings, and families are being left out of financial support and access to resources due to 
immigration status. Others are targets of heightened fraudulent activity, while others are being 
told to seek advice from primary care doctors that do not exist for them. The impact is not the 
same for immigrants and individual with limited English proficiency, and the access to resources 
is not equal. This brief explores some of those needs and creative solutions shared during 
listening sessions, strategy sessions, and conversations with survivors. 

National Resource Center for Reaching Victims logo (helping those who help others) 
Casa de Esperanza logo National Latin@ Network

Unique Impacts 
Increase in Hate, Fraud and Financial Crimes 



A very noticeable increase in hate crimes and bigotry has become more prevalent and 
has made life for Asian immigrants and Asian-Americans very difficult. Many reports have 
shown an increase in crime and incidents involving Asians in America. From online 
harassment to attempted murder and everything in between. There is unease in Asian 
communities as they deal with the medical crisis as well as the well-founded fears of 
being the target of hate crimes and harassment. APIGBV has received calls from service 
providers confirming this situation. Some reports mention up to one hundred (100) 
incidents happening daily. We expect this number to be higher as this is just what is being 
reported. Many immigrants and refugees are afraid of coming forward to report crimes to 
authorities due to fear of deportation and previous hostile experiences with law 
enforcement. Right now, that fear is doubled as they are afraid also to come forward to 
seek medical care. The Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council have created forms in 
different languages for people to report and Stop AAPI Hate. 


During this crisis, we have heard from our communities about an abundance of fraudulent 
activity, many times coming from within the same communities. Especially in the Latin@ 
community, individuals known as “Notarios” assist the community in navigating systems 
and completing forms or give advice based on their knowledge. We have heard of some 
notaries or individuals posing at notaries using their credibility based of their role very 
much accepted in some Latin American countries and in U.S. Latin@ communities to take 
part in fraudulent activity that we could divide in four categories: 


Medical treatments: Miracle treatments that “cure” COVID-19 are being offered all 
over the internet, and through apps (e.g. WhatsApp). Those pushing this rely on the 
acceptance of homeopathic remedies (“Botanicas/Herboristerias) in Latinx culture. 


Financial help fraud: We have heard about offers to help with tax filing in order to get 
stimulus checks, even when the filers would not qualify for one. We have heard about 
many ways in which people could get access to funds, only to find their 
information/identity stolen or asked to put money upfront for non-existent loans. 


Fraud through email, text and calls: This has also appeared in the community at large, 
but victims are being contacted in their first language. 








Misinformation: Although not a crime, Latin@ and other immigrant communities have 
been the target of misinformation through social media and other channels about the 
dangers of COVID-19 and what precautions they should take. 

April 2020 


Challenges to Access Health Care 



From the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, the most common advice given has been “if 
you have symptoms, stay at home, and contact your primary care physician”. For most 
Latinx, immigrant and refugee individuals this is not possible for a few reasons: 


Based on their jobs, they have been classified as essential workers and, in many cases, 
and dependent on this income, forcing them to keep working and becoming exposed 
to COVID-19. 


Many immigrants/refugees do not qualify for employment-based healthcare or their 
employers simply do not include healthcare in their benefits. Therefore, most of them 
do not have a primary care physician. Who would they go to in these cases? Would 
they pay out of pocket? Most likely they will end up in the Emergency Room when their 
symptoms are already advanced. 


Many have lost their jobs and no longer can afford to pay for medical services out of 
pocket. 






Access to healthcare among immigrants was not easily accessible even before this crisis 
started. 


We have heard that undocumented immigrants are afraid of seeking medical care for 
fear of deportation. Some fear that even if they seek medical care, they will rack up large 
medical debts that either themselves or their families will have to pay. Some fear they will 
be discriminated against if they need a ventilator, either because they do not have 
insurance or if they are undocumented. 


Financial Disadvantage 



Even with stimulus checks/deposits being sent to families across the country, we 
found that many immigrant families will not receive any kind of financial support from the 
government. Some of those families may be undocumented or individuals in the family 
may have different immigrations status, hence mixed status family. We have heard of 
married couples that have applied for change of status and they will not receive any 
financial support since at least one person in the family may not have a social security 
number, a requirement for the financial support, according to the CARES Act. See the 
Migration Policy Institute report on Mixed-Families ineligible for U.S. Financial Pandemic 
Relief. 


Other Financial support, which may be private source, have been running out of funds in 


record times, as resources are scarce. 
April 2020 


Ties with Families Abroad 

Immigrants and refugees not only worry about their family living in the U.S., but they may 
worry about their families in their countries of origin, where access to care may be 
substandard at best. Even though they may get to keep in touch using technology, they 
cannot attend to their families abroad due to closed borders, stay at home orders, and/or 
immigration concerns. 





Immigration Issues 

United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) have closed their offices to the 
public. Even though they are processing cases, no interviews of any kind are taking place. 
This can delay access to stability for some victims (e.g. U Visa, T Visa, VAWA cases). This 
has also led to some confusion about visas and their extensions. Many people are in 
limbo. 





Language Access Challenges 



The gaps that we have seen in the past regarding lack of language access, have made 
themselves more evident during this crisis. 


Most court services have been suspended across the country, thus making it more difficult 
for victims to have access to justice, safety and healing. 


There have been reports of people arriving at hospitals and language access not being 
afforded, leading to negative outcomes. They are not able to communicate with doctors 
about their symptoms. In some cases, immigrants have died without medical professionals 
being able to communicate with them. In some instances, their final wishes before death 
have not been fulfilled due to lack of language access services. 


Departments of Health and other government agencies have failed to provide in some 
cases information in other languages, leaving individuals to depend on private non-profit 
or community activists to generate their own materials in other languages. Many 
advocates have been doing systems advocacy with agencies that have failed to comply 
with their legal obligations. 


April 2020 




Interpreters have mentioned losing jobs due to the lack of opportunities as courts have 
closed and emergency services have moved to Zoom, Adobe Connect, Skype and other 
platforms. Those interpreters working in the medical field have also lost jobs since 
Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and Emergency Rooms are limiting the number of people who 
can be in hospital rooms and other hospital public areas. Not all language access services 
have moved to providing virtual services and moreover, in many cases, doctors do not 
want to use tablets or computers to avoid touching more surfaces in the fear of spreading 
the disease. 


Interpreters some times are not called to interpret for victims in virtual settings. Those who 
have, are reporting issues with technology and victims do not know how to connect and 
use the technology properly. There is also a digital divide and many communities in rural 
areas do not have reliable Internet speed to communicate through a video setting. 


Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals have been affected by the crisis by the lack of 
access to American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters or their medium of their choice: 


Use of medical masks not only in medical settings, have made it more difficult for those 
who rely on lip reading. It has muffled all sound for those who are Hard of Hearing 
making it more difficult to understand, thus getting partial information or bluffing as 
they may feel they are inconveniencing practitioners. 


No access to tablets or hearing assistive technology has also occurred in smaller 
and/or rural settings. 






a young latinx couple with arms around each other's shoulders, smiling in front of a house.
April 2020 


Promising Strategies 

Community based organizations have been hard at work creating lists of resources that 
includes different categories such as: medical, legal, resources for non-profits, resources 
in various language, resources for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, resources for 
immigrants, and fact sheets on financial options. 





Non-profits and national organizations have organized spaces for people to share 
information, resources and stories of what is going on in the field with victims of crime. 







Victim service providers are quickly adapting and finding innovative solutions to 
staying connected with victims through traditional and alternative ways. 


A lot of in-language materials have been created by community-based organizations so 
additional people in immigrant/refugee communities can have access to information 
regarding COVID-19, public health measures and the continuation of services. 


Language Access has not always been on the radar of many governmental and non-profit 
organizations, as they struggle to provide services in other languages during this crisis. It 
is more important now than ever that we push for compliance and responsiveness when it 
comes to this issue. 


Immigrant communities have consistently been underserved and COVID-19 has illuminated 
the lack of overall support which makes it more difficult for them to get help if they 
experience a crime. Immigrant communities do not have consistent basic human rights 
during this pandemic. 


April 2020 


About the National Resource Center for Reaching Victims 

The National Resource Center for Reaching Victims (NRC) is a clearinghouse for victim 
service providers, culturally specific organizations, criminal justice professionals, and 
policymakers to get information and expert guidance to enhance their capacity to identify, 
reach, and serve all victims, especially those from communities that are underrepresented in 
healing services and avenues to justice. For more information about the NRC, visit the NRC’s 
website at http://reachingvictims.org. 

About Casa de Esperanza 

Casa de Esperanza -National Latin@ Network is a leader in the domestic violence movement 
and a national resource center for organizations working with Latin@s in the United States. 
Based in St. Paul, Minnesota Casa de Esperanza’s mission is to “mobilize Latinas and Latin@ 
communities to end domestic violence.” Founded in 1982 to provide emergency shelter for 
Latinas and other women and children experiencing domestic violence, the organization has 
grown to become the largest Latina organization in the country focused on domestic 
violence. Casa de Esperanza is also committed to becoming a greater resource to 
organizations and communities in the areas of sexual assault and trafficking. Casa de 
Esperanza is home to the National Latin@ Network for Healthy Families and 
Communities (NLN), a national project that operates on four pillars: training and technical 
assistance, public policy initiatives, research and evaluation, and communications. For more 
information about Casa de Esperanza and the National Latin@ Network visit Casa's website 
at https://www.nationallatinonetwork.org 

This resource was produced by the Vera Institute of Justice under award #2016 XV GX K015, awarded by 
the Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, 
findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this (insert type of product) are those of the 
contributors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the 

U.S. Department of Justice. 

April 2020