Texas Lt. Governor Says Unvaxxed Blacks at Heart of State’s COVID Surge

Texas' Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is being pilloried in the media, not only in his own state, but nationwide, after a Fox News appearance Thursday night where he said that unvaccinated Black Texans are at the heart of the state’s rising COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths.

“The COVID is spreading, particularly, most of the numbers are on the unvaccinated,” Patrick said, attempting to defend the COVID policies of Texas Governor Greg Abbott. "“The Democrats like to blame Republicans. Well, the biggest groups in most states is African Americans who are not vaccinated. Last time I checked, over 90 percent of them vote for Democrats in their major cities and major counties.”

Despite the criticism directed at Patrick, a Friday morning story in the Houston Chronicle seems to support his claims:

Almost 55 percent of Texans over 12 years old are fully vaccinated, which lags behind the national rate of 60 percent. Young people, rural communities, and Black and Latino people are among the groups in Texas less likely to receive vaccinations.

According to the same article, Black and Latino people are four times as likely as white to be hospitalized for COVID, but are less likely than white people to be vaccinated.

As of Monday, about 38 percent of Black Texans are fully vaccinated compared to 47 percent of white Texans, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Patrick has said on numerous occasions that he respects the rights of people who don't want to be vaccinated and would never be in favor of vaxx mandates, but then reiterated that Blacks in the state have "a significantly high number of unvaccinated people."