CDC Racism and Health Work Group

1. CDC Racism and HealthWork Group Academy for Health Equity Conference June 26, 2008

2. History Measures of Racism Working Group - Established October 2000 • Led by Dr. Camara Jones Racism and Health Workgroup established as Official CDC workgroup 2008 • Develop a framework for understanding how racism impacts the health of Americans • Review currently available measures of racism • Identify or develop measures of racism for use on national data collection efforts

3. What is racism? A system of structuring opportunity and assigning value based on the social interpretation of how one looks (“race”) Source: Jones CP, Phylon 2003

4. Racism • Unfairly advantages other individuals and communities • Unfairly disadvantages some individuals and communities • Saps the strength of the whole society through the waste of human resources Source: Jones CP, Phylon 2003

5. Vision A nation free of racism and the class divisions that racism supports. Such a nation will be a healthy society in which ALL people are highly valued and ALL people are able to develop to their full potential.

6. Mission To provide research and policy analysis on health promotion, on prevention of disease, injury, and disability, and on provision of healthy environments, so that all people, especially those at higher risk due to societal inequities, will achieve their optimal lifespan with the best possible quality of health in every stage of life.

7. United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) “Racism includes racist ideologies, prejudiced attitudes, discriminatory behavior, structural arrangements and institutionalized practices resulting in racial inequality as well as the fallacious notion that discriminatory relations between groups are morally and scientifically justifiable;

8. UNESCO (continued) it is reflected in discriminatory provisions in legislation or regulations and discriminatory practices as well as in anti-social beliefs and acts; it hinders the development of its victims, perverts those who practice it, divides nations internally, impedes international co-operation and gives rise to political tensions between peoples;

9. UNESCO (continued) it is contrary to the fundamental principles of international law and, consequently, seriously disturbs international peace and security.”2

10. Public Health Mission • Name racism as a threat to the health and well-being of the nation • Identify the mechanisms by which it operates, • Develop interventions that dismantle the mechanisms of racism and • Develop/Support equitable structures, policies, practices, and norms so that a healthy society can be realized

11. Membership • General members • 75 Persons currently employed at CDC/ATSDR • Associate members • 78 Persons NOT currently employed at CDC/ATSDR: other federal agencies, academia, health departments, community members and others

12. Purpose Facilitate research and intervention on racism, which is a threat to the physical and mental health and well-being of the nation, in order to promote the public’s health.

13. Objectives • Identify or propose measures of racism that can be used in research and intervention on the impacts of racism on the health and well-being of the nation • Identify the mechanisms by which racism operates and has its adverse impacts on health

14. Objectives • Promote the development of interventions to eliminate racism and prevent its adverse impacts on health • Contribute to a national conversation regarding the impacts of racism on the health and well-being of the nation

15. Committee Organization • Science & Publications • Policy & Legislation • Liaison & Partnership • Education & Development • Communication & Dissemination • Organizational Excellence • Global Matters

16. Committees Science and Publications • Develop methods for improving the quality of science and research on racism as a fundamental cause of health disparities and social inequity. • Serve as liaison to the CDC Excellence in Science Committee • NHANES reactions to race Question: How often do you think about your race?

17. Education and Development Provide widespread education and staff development opportunities on racism and health for CDC/ATSDR and its partners, such as: Design training programs Develop curricula Sponsor seminars, workshops, film series Initiate expert panels on public health and racism Create educational pipelines Committees (continued)

18. Committees (continued) Communication and Dissemination • Facilitate the sharing of information to the larger community at CDC/ATSDR and beyond, including directly to local communities and the general public • Develop and maintain mechanisms for information sharing and communication • Host RAHW website

19. Committees (continued) Organizational Excellence • Examine implications of racism with regard to structures, policies, programs, practices, norms, and values within public health systems including academia, government, and community • Explore ethical considerations of public health obligations and political regulations • Progress institutional work of RAHW

20. Committees (continued) Policy and Legislation • Review existing policy and legislation for differential impacts by “race”/ethnicity • Develop guidelines for new policy and legislation that support social equity • Provide consultation to programs on possible intervention strategies at the environmental, policy, and legislative levels • Collaborate with public health law efforts

21. Committees (continued) Global Matters • Connect efforts to name and address the impacts of racism on the health and well-being of the United States with global efforts to achieve social equity • Educate members of organizations about global initiatives and developments around social equity

22. Committees (continued) Liaison and Partnership • Develop partnerships with representatives from multiple organizational levels interested in naming and addressing racism • Nurture youth and involve seniors in the work of the organization

23. Anticipated work products • Measures of racism for national surveys • Measures of racism for equity impact analysis of structures, policies, practices, and norms • Courses and seminars for CDC • Toolkits and curricula for partners

24. Anticipated Work Products (continued) • Program and policy intervention strategies • Website, podcasts, publications • Speakers Bureau • Annual report with recommendations to CDC Director

25. Accomplishments • “Reactions to Race” module on the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System • Six-question optional module • Piloted in 2002 • Now available to all states • Used by 16 states through 2006

26. Accomplishments • Scientific Roadmap project in Jackson, Mississippi • Community-driven effort to identify and address the causes of “racial”/ethnic health disparities • Attracted initial grant of $200,000 from the Kellogg Foundation • Model of community empowerment • Recently awarded additional funding from Kellogg ($1.5m over three years)

27. Accomplishments • “Racism Hypothesis” for the National Children’s Study • Proposal for inclusion of “Reactions to Race” questions on NHANES • Early measures of institutionalized racism (structures, policies, practices, norms, values) • Advisors to “Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making Us Sick?”

28. Questions?

29. THANK YOU !