Considerable health inequalities exist between whites and people of color in the USA. These are not merely inequalities: they are inequities as they stem from racial injustice. Stress from racism and marginalization, and resource-poor and polluted environments are among the social determinants that create these inequities. Understanding structural and interpersonal racism, measuring its impact on health and well-being, and critically assessing what needs to be done to address race-based health inequities requires collaboration across disciplines.
The second Benjamin Rabinowitz Symposium in Medical Ethics on the topic of Race, Health and Justice, organized by the Department of Philosophy and the School of Public Health, was held on October 11 at the University of Washington. It aimed to bring together speakers and audience members from the disciplines of Philosophy, Public Health, Social Work, Medicine, Law, Bioethics, Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies, and Public Policy in order to facilitate the sharing of cross-disciplinary research on racism and race-based health inequities. Chandra Ford (UCLA) and Dorothy Roberts (UPenn) delivered the keynote addresses. The generous sponsors were the Benjamin Rabinowitz Endowment in Medical Ethics, the Department of Philosophy, the Program on Ethics, and the School of Public Health.
The following talks from the symposium are linked here for you to view on the Department of Philosophy's Youtube channel:
"Racism is a Public Health Issue" Chandra Ford, UCLA
"Mistreating Health Inequities in the Genomic Age," Dorothy Roberts, University of Pennsylvania
"Understanding the Role of Migration in Shaping the Health of Latinos," India Ornelas, Public Health