Top Things to Know: Addressing Structural Racism Through Public Policy Advocacy
Published: January 16, 2024
- During the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Heart Association created a 2024 impact goal with health equity at its core, in recognition of the increasing health disparities in our country and the overwhelming evidence of the damaging effect of structural racism on cardiovascular and stroke health.
- Concurrent to the announcement of the impact goal was the release of an AHA Presidential Advisory on structural racism, recognizing racism as a fundamental driver of health disparities and directing the American Heart Association to advance antiracist strategies regarding science, business operations, leadership, quality improvement, and advocacy.
- The AHA, when declaring structural racism as a fundamental driver of health inequity, committed to use its ability to influence public policy and organization- and systems-level policy to challenge racist policies that are fundamental barriers to health equity.
- This policy statement builds on the call to action put forth in our Presidential Advisory, discussing specific opportunities to leverage public policy in promoting overall wellbeing, and rectifying structural barriers that impede progress toward optimal health for all communities.
- The history of structural racism in the US, and the resulting inequities persisting across generations, did not occur by chance. Public policy and governmental authority, historically and, often, by design, were used to impose and promote discriminatory policies, practices and societal norms that advantaged White Americans at the expense of other minoritized racial and ethnic groups.
- Addressing structural racism means delivering expedient and accessible interventions that target overlapping social determinants which drive disparate health outcomes.
- Specifically, this statement examines the history of structural racism and offers policy considerations for several priority social drivers of health including health care, healthy food and nutrition access, access to capital, housing, education, and the environment.
- The statement also identifies public health and data infrastructure, health information technology, and civic engagement as additional issues at the intersection of structural racism and health equity that should addressed.
- The AHA suggests a multipronged approach for addressing structural racism through public policy in alignment with a set of principles developed to guide our advocacy and provide a roadmap for other organizations seeking to implement successful policy agendas focused on mitigating structural racism. The core tenets of these principles emphasize: an equity-first lens, a life course approach, lived experience, powerful partnerships, adaptable, sustainable and scalable frameworks, and mechanisms to measure success.
- The AHA, cognizant of its strengths and limitations and acknowledging the expertise of other dedicated institutions, presents these policy considerations in the spirit of shared responsibility and collective action. Our aim in offering this guidance is to inspire a broader coalition of diverse stakeholders to confront, through public policy advocacy, the far-reaching and multifaceted repercussions of structural racism on health equity.
Citation
Albert MA, Churchwell K, Desai N, Johnson J, Johnson M, Khera A, Mieres J, Rodriguez F, Velarde G, Williams DR, Wu JC; on behalf of the American Heart Association Advocacy Coordinating Committee. Addressing structural racism through public policy advocacy: a policy statement from the American Heart Association. Circulation. Published online January 16, 2024. doi: 10.1161/CIR.0000000000001203