We've taken quite a hit. Obviously we're still trying to maintain busy and bring in business.

So yeah, we've taken a hit.

From Futuro Miria, it's Latino USA. I'm Maria Inohosa.

One thing is certain, the COVID-19 shutdown here in the epicenter of it all in New York City

continues to save lives and it has kept hospitals here from being overwhelmed with new patients.

But here in New York City and all across the country, the corner shops and family run

businesses and bodegas that are at the center of many communities are facing an existential threat.

Many Latino business owners are struggling to pay their rent, meet their payrolls and stay

afloat. And some are wondering if this might be the end of the road.

To alleviate this, by the end of March, Congress had come up with a massive relief bill

that set aside $349 billion to help small businesses and to protect the paychecks of their employees.

The funds were meant to be distributed in the form of low interest business loans,

but in less than two weeks, all of that money was gone and thousands of applications were left up in the air.

The role of this program was played by accusations of unfairness in a process that shut out many

Latino small businesses. And these are folks that will fight to make what they want and fight to make

their businesses successful. Texas Public Radio Entrepreneurship Reporter Paul Flav has been

covering this story across Texas, which is one of the highest rates of Latino owned businesses

in the country. Paul's reporting has highlighted the stories of people in the Latino business community

who have been trying to access those relief funds and have mostly come up short in a very crucial

moment for their businesses. And in full transparency, Futuro Media runs Latino USA and we are a small

Latino and woman of color run business that is also a non-profit. We did apply for a payment

protection loan, which is a central part of the conversation Paul and I will have today.

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