Angela D. Coleman, Ìbíyínká Oladojá Oyèwọlá, is a nonprofit executive, social entrepreneur, and scholar-practitioner dedicated to transforming communities through innovation, systems-level thinking, and equity-centered solutions.
Health disparities are real, impacting individuals, families, and our communities. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) describes health disparities as “preventable differences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to achieve optimal health that are experienced by socially disadvantaged populations.” Source
While health disparities result from multiple factors, including poverty, environmental threats, inadequate access to healthcare, individual and behavioral factors, and educational inequalities, the most current research shows us that:
Racism is the biggest threat to the health and well-being of Black people.
Compared with White people, Black people are at much greater risk for developing a range of health problems, including heart disease, diabetes, and dementia. Did you know Black people are twice as likely as White people to develop Alzheimer’s disease?
Our bodies are amazing. It should come as no surprise that racism affects our bodies on a neurobiological level.
Our brains develop and function in complex, multifaceted ways.
The Grady Project
The Grady Trauma Project is a 20-year study about the trauma and stress that Black people experience in the metropolitan Atlanta community.
The authors of this trauma study were able to prove how racial discrimination, including microaggressions, increases the risk of disease and health problems by affecting the function and structure of the brain.
In our view, what makes racism particularly insidious and pernicious to the health of Black people is the societal invalidation that accompanies it.
This makes racial trauma effectively invisible.
Racism, whether it originates from people or from institutional systems, is often rationalized, excused or dismissed… This continual questioning and doubting of the circumstances around racist experiences, or racial gaslighting, may be part of what depletes the brain of its resources, causing the weathering that ultimately increases vulnerability to brain health problems.”
Conclusion
Sisterhood Agenda encourages global girls empowerment, holistic health and wellness, housing, and community development.
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