From “Telling Stories in the Dark: Finding healing and hope in sharing our sadness, grief, trauma, and pain” by Jeffrey Munroe
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explains:
Racism – both interpersonal and structural – negatively affects the mental and physical health of millions of people, preventing them from attaining their highest level of health, and consequently, affecting the health of our nation. A growing body of research shows that centuries of racism in this country has had a profound and negative impact on communities of color. The impact is pervasive and deeply embedded in our society – affecting where one lives, learns, works, worships, and plays and creating inequities in access to a range of social and economic benefits – such as housing, education, wealth, and employment. These conditions – often referred to as social determinants of health – are key drivers of health inequities within communities of color, placing those within these populations at greater risk for poor health outcomes.