The past three months have undeniably and climatically
exposed the fact that racism is alive and the very culprit
that's caused millions of people of color to be unwell.
After three months of isolation from the COVID-19
pandemic — which gripped our nation and claimed the
lives of a disproportionate number of African Americans —
the deaths of three African Americans who should still be
alive and the associated "Black Lives Matter" protests
served as a perverse coming-out party for America.
The murder by asphyxiation of George Floyd by Minneapolis
police officers, the dehumanizing hunt and murder of
Ahmaud Arbery, the tragic death of Breonna Taylor,
weaponization of Amy Cooper's white advantage launched
as an assault against Christian Cooper as he birdwatched in
Central Park, and countless others that are seen and
unseen are legacies of "living while black," an ever-present
reality for African Americans rooted in the vestiges of
slavery and
perpetuated by
structural and
institutionalized
racism.
Structural racism in
housing, banking,
education, economic
mobility, the justice
system, and health
care are figurative
vectors of an
insidious social virus
plaguing African Americans across our country, infecting
and affecting far more than our current pandemic. These
ills underlie the national COVID-19 mortality data, which
tells us that the death rate for blacks is 2.4 times as high
as the rate for whites, and 2.2 times as high as the rate for
Asians and Latinos. We see similar health injustices in
maternal mortality, infant mortality, prevalence of chronic
conditions, and life expectancy.
Centuries of injustice have caused people of color to live in
a perpetual public health crisis, possessing lived experience
with racism as a primary social determinant of health.
Hispanics and Latin Americans face isolation and barriers to
health and well-being due to language barriers, lack of
insurance coverage, and injurious political rhetoric and
policies targeting their community. The rate of poverty
among Native Americans is nearly double the national
average for all people and 1.7 times higher for children,
and the share of those living in poverty was 26 percent for
Native Americans in 2016 compared to the total population
of 14 percent. More recently, the well-being of thousands of
immigrants is in jeopardy as they forgo necessary health
and human services in fear of recent changes to the federal
public charge rule that restricts immigrants from basic,
publicly funded programs.
Our country has reached a tipping point. As evidenced by
the demographic makeup of the protests in many major
cities, we see white people willing to use their voice and
their advantage to stand for justice. While the diversity of
non-violent protesters is an encouraging sight, we must
forge these vital advocacy efforts when there are no dead
black men on our streets. We must leverage our platforms
and daily spheres of influence spanning from ballot boxes
to board rooms. As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once noted,
"In the end we will not remember the words of our
enemies, but the silence of our friends."
White people have an opportunity to use the advantage of
their whiteness for justice. To hold themselves and other
white people accountable for anti-racist behaviors,
policies, and practices. In doing so, we bind ourselves
together in solidarity in the fight for equity and justice.
It's time for philanthropy to do our part to pursue
philanthropic justice
with urgency and
relentless resolve.
Like every facet of
our society, racial
bias – both personal
and institutional,
conscious and
unconscious – creeps
into all elements of
philanthropic and
grantmaking
processes across
funders. The inherent
lack of trust in people of color or predisposition to the size
and scale of white-led organizations leaves organizations
led by people of color locked out from accessing capital to
serve and improve their communities.
As we continue our work guided by the communities we
serve, Health Forward Foundation will center racial equity
in our core competencies of leadership, advocacy, and
resources. Practicing racial equity means that we will work
to create the conditions in which one's racial identity has
absolutely no influence on their ability to thrive. This
aspiration requires Health Forward to be the change we
wish to see by ensuring racial equity becomes our very
ethos. Today, we stand with all who face racism, injustice,
and inequity in our society. We commit to ensuring our
culture, staff, governance, grantmaking, partnerships,
advocacy initiatives, vendors, suppliers, and organizational
policies, practices, and procedures actualize racial equity,
inclusion, and belonging.
There's no doubt there's a journey ahead for our
foundation. But as our name conveys, centering racial
equity is indeed the direction necessary to move health
forward.
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