After Boston Mayor Marty Walsh declared on June 12 that racism is a public health crisis in Boston, several local public health experts—including Jarvis Chen, research scientist in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health—shared their thoughts about the problem with Boston Magazine.
Chen talked about the extensive literature showing that racism profoundly impacts human health, and how COVID-19’s disproportionate impact on people of color has highlighted these inequities. He said that when people suggest that there’s a conflict between protesting for Black lives and staying safe from the virus, it’s a false dilemma. “They’re part and parcel of the same thing,” he said.
Read the Boston Magazine article: Marty Walsh Declared Racism a Public Health Issue. Here’s Why.
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