ReSponding to DisparitieS: A Look at a Post-2020 United States By Hadija Steen Mills
H ave you ever had a cut in the most inconvenient place? One of those places that you continually bump and re-aggravate? That is the current backdrop of the United States, a festering set of wounds that are in the most used places of the collective body. There is a shared yearning for healing to mend the wounds that keep reopening. But healing does not mean there are no scars. It means altered tissue is rejoined into a new landscape. Moving toward a new future requires letting go of the pre-2020, because we can do better than before. The events of 2020 opened many people’s eyes to deep and rooted inequities that are an undercurrent in this country and the world. In the context of Minnesota the issue is magnified due to the Minnesota Paradox: the phenomenon that Minnesota ranks as one of the best places to live in the nation, but only if you are white. If you are Black, Native American or a person of color, it ranks as one of the worst. Information like this flies around like hot summer mosquitos: pesky reminders that won’t catch a hint. This is an oppressive environment that strips communities of their power and aggressions, both big and small, one that belittles and hurts. A new future requires naming the infections of
oppression that fester in the wounds. Words like “public health” and “racism” have been launched into the realm of dinnertime conversation topics. In the last year, I have been asked for a definition of public health, whether or not something is racist, or what racism and public health have to do with each other. Although public health is a relatively young field, it is very much in a relationship with social inequities.
this all mean? It means there are five different systems to navigate: Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Hennepin County, Ramsey County and the State of Minnesota, all holding unique pockets of services and information, without working as a cohesive unit of support.
Read the full article at tptoriginals.org/post2020US .
Hadija Steen Mills [they|she] was born and raised on Dakota land commonly known as Minneapolis. They received a Bachelor’s in Science from the University of Minnesota in sexual health with a focus on reproductive justice and health disparities.
Public health focuses on the prevention of negative health
outcomes. Current systems have created an inequitable world where differences in the ability to access services and the way people are treated directly contribute to disease and unequal outcomes. 2020 was the year racism was declared a public-health crisis. It was a call for mobilization and movement toward a new future. A new future requires reattaching the severed pieces into a unified system. It requires harnessing the collective power. Minneapolis and Saint Paul make up the Twin Cities. They have their unique characteristics, but the major dividing line between these two locations is the mighty Mississippi River. Minneapolis is part of Hennepin County and Saint Paul is situated in Ramsey County, and all of that is a portion of Minnesota. So what does
A multimedia storytelling project. Learn more at RacismUnveiled.org.
This work is generously funded by a lead grant from the Otto Bremer Trust, with additional support from HealthPartners.
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