According to the federal Office of Minority Health, Mexican-Americans suffer slightly less infant mortality than do non-Hispanic white Americans:
https://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/omh/browse.aspx?lvl=4&lvlid=68
That would seem to punch a major hole in the Racism Theory.
41
Since racism has a significant social component, it would have been nice if the MD’s included trained social scientists in their diagnosis!
9
I couldn’t access the journal essay but I hope Dr. Heard-Garris was able to explain to her 4 yo son that race doesn’t depend on who you play with. And when he is older to explain group instincts and preferences.
Dr. Spinks-Franklin describes how this manifests in adolescence.
“And then in adolescence, as children explore racial and cultural identity, they tend to show strong preferences for their own groups, sorting themselves out by table in the cafeteria”.
Sure would be nice if we were all the same color. I would vote for Dr. Heard-Garris’s description of her son's skin. Caramel.
2
Religion, caste, and growing influence of political polarization are equally important besides skin color and gender in this discussion.
12
Wouldn't the world's long, expansive history of anti semitism have the same effects on Jewish children?
Yet it's those populations that have been demonstrably oppressed and purged that seemed to succeed time and again. That systematic oppression can be seen in DNA particularly for Ashkenazi Jews.
So how have those communities continued to overcome the chronic stress of discrimination for positive outcomes?
We should look to proven long term success for real solutions.
48
@CNNNNC As a victim of antisemitism, I am well aware that there is one big difference between racism and antisemitism. Not everyone who I meet knows that I'm Jewish. When your skin is black, you can't conceal it.
You can be certain that racism is far more damaging as a result.
106
Dr. Trent is right:
"... race itself is a social construct... Genetically, we’re very much the same.”
Pictures, books, toys should reflect the diversity of the population served. Good idea.
On the other hand, this article makes two important errors, which ideas are damaging to our society:
First, the article attributes issues associated with poverty to racism. Poverty and racism are two very different things; don't pretend that they are the same.
Second, the article assumes that African-Americans are the only victims of racism. Not true! Any group can be targeted, and any group is or has been targeted at some point. As a European-American, I'm targeted every time I hear the phrase "white privilege."
It's important to work towards less racism, not more. Being myopic about the problem is unfortunately very common, but such myopia helps the politics of hate, and we all know where that got us.
39
@Astrochimp - You don't understand what 'white privilege' means if you think the phrase is targeting you. That's a truly ridiculous thing to say. You also appear uneducated about the systemic *racist* policies that have led to African American families having less generational wealth and therefore higher poverty rates. You have a lot of reading to do - I would recommend starting with 'The Case for Reparations', by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Or you could just Google 'redlining'. We can't work toward less racism from a place of ignorance.
78
@Astrochimp
"White privilege" isn't a term meant to "target" white people like you say (I'm white, too). It's meant to draw our attention to things that we've been conditioned to ignore -- specifically, how race impacts ALL of our lives. That white people are socially allowed to feel threatened ("targeted") by discussions of race when racialized populations ("people of color") are defined by their race and MUST deal with the implications of race is in itself white privilege. "I don't have to deal with race, it doesn't affect me" or "talking about race makes me feel bad so I won't do it" are hallmarks of white privilege.
At the same time, no one chose to be born into their particular bodies or societies. It's not your fault you were born white into a society organized by race in which whites get lots of privileges. You didn't decide it, and you couldn't have stopped it when you were born into it. No one is blaming you. HOWEVER, how you act after the fact is totally up to you, so if you act poorly you might get censured, which is fair.
No one is "targeting" you by thinking critically and speaking openly about this racial structure. But, if you react defensively to protect your privilege while denying the rights of others to have these conversations just because they make you uncomfortable, then you are culpable. No worries, though: every day you can choose to do better..
83
For this article to make any sense, a clear and explicit definition of "racism" would be helpful. It seems most of the focus is on African Americans, but then issues like lack of representation--which are surely present in regards to other minorities--are mentioned tangentially. Do all under-represented minorites suffer ill effects? Do Jews and Asians suffer equally as Turks and Latinx? Are kids in more integrated communities more or less likely to have ill effects? This article reads like a list of convenient tropes, but absent any hard, specific information that should be the basis of scientific conclusions.
43
Racism is learned. We can and must do better. And that starts with adults, physicians, psychologists, teachers, coaches — all of us — looking in the mirror. Learning about white privilege and being accountable. Racism is learned.
23
It is also important to understand that many, and perhaps most, of the comments in this article related to racial bias also apply to conscious and unconscious bias against poor white children and adolescents.
29
Thanks for an important reminder of what all of us, especially health care providers and educators, should keep in mind everyday as they work. As a retired health care provider I tried to do this....not always very successfully, I might add.
Note: the essay referred to towards the end of the article is not available if one does not subscribe to that journal. That is unfortunate.
13
@richard: Regarding the journal: try your local library to see if they subscribe to journal databases that contain that journal. I use this method to find articles in academic journals all the time.
8
As an OTR providing pediatric homecare, I realized early on the importance of multicultural dolls for my clients and their families. Children in Hasidic neighborhoods sought out the female doll that wore a dress, not pants, to represent a "mommy". Children chose dolls whose skin and hair most closely matched their own and their parents. I was even gifted a doll from a multi-cultural family to round out my collection. It was that important.
31