“You can only oppress people so long before things tend to erupt.”

Death rates from the coronavirus have been highest in low-income areas, writes Robert David Sullivan. And according to one measure of economic inequality, the U.S. more closely resembles Latin America and Africa than Europe.

Their isolation can be a positive—in this case it has kept the coronavirus at bay—“but they can’t count on government health care services and have to deal with a deep racism.”

In Europe, there is a broad consensus that the elderly have suffered the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic—some have called it a “silent massacre.”

On March 25, hoping to suppress the spread of the coronavirus, India began the world’s largest lockdown, affecting 1.3 billion people. But the sudden move to close down all but essential services threw millions out of work and began a desperate exodus of migrant and day laborers out of the big cities.

As much as 75 percent of Lebanon’s population is in need of emergency assistance.