Racism, Power, and the Local Politics of Health Equity

• In Event: All Public Health Is Local: Local Politics and the Dynamics of Public Health

Abstract

Profound racial disparities in health are among the most disconcerting aspects of inequity in the United States. Divergent health outcomes between Americans racialized as White and those racialized as Black, Latinx, Asian, and Native American do not stem from biological or genetic differences. To the contrary, “race” is a social fact that comes to have concrete consequences through economic and political systems. Though some of the structural dimensions of racial inequality are now more widely recognized, the political contours of health equity remain understudied. Scholars are only beginning to grasp how racialized configurations of political power bear upon health equity and public health--especially at the local level. This paper advances such knowledge through a focus on the politics of local housing policy. Drawing on in-depth qualitative evidence (i.e., participant observation and interviews) I examine how tenants in predominantly Black and Latinx neighborhoods organize to build local political power in response to health threatening conditions of habitability (e.g., asbestos and lead exposure). By systematically charting the ways tenants navigate local political processes, I identify the specific barriers that impede their efforts to build political power for safe housing. The findings also underscore some of the factors that facilitate power building. Ultimately, by bringing power to the fore, this paper deepens policy relevant knowledge of the local politics of health equity, public health, and racism.

Author

• Jamila D. Michener, Cornell University