Three Policy Areas to Prioritize for the Advancement of the Black Community in Maryland’s 7th District: Open Letter to Representative Kweisi Mfume
By: Dr. Adejare, Jay
Tags: Baltimore, Police Reform, Housing, Kwesi Mfume, Healthcare

This piece identifies police reform, healthcare and housing as priority areas to focus on in Maryland’s 7th congressional district for the advancement of the Black community in the 117th Unites States Congress.

Police Reform

Every year, police kill more than 1,000 people every year in America (Sinyangwe, 2016). Even though making up only 14% of the population, Black people are disproportionately (34%) killed by police and these elevated rates are thought to be the result of police bias (Mapping Police Violence). Across the country, this summer, the killing of George Floyd triggered national protests and debates about police use of force and the role of factors such as racism, even in the middle of restrictions imposed by a pandemic. Freddie Gray’s death at the hands of the Baltimore police resulted in similar riots in 2015 but nothing has changed five years later. In Baltimore, Black people have been killed at four times the rate of white people and 1.5 times the rate of the general population by police since 2013 (Mapping Police Violence).

Healthcare

Disparities are often interpreted as racial or ethnic disparities and one facet of this is health disparities (Allen, 1915; Heckler, 1985; Hoffman, 1926). When health outcomes are different, to a greater or lesser extent between populations, there is a disparity (Marmot, 2015). We can also place disparities in health outcomes of specific populations, in this case, Black and other minority groups in the context of social determinants of health (SDOH) (Du Bois & Eaton, 1899; Heckler, 1985).

Healthy People 2020 defines a health disparity as “a particular type of health difference that is closely linked with social, economic, and/or environmental disadvantage (Healthy People 2020). Health disparities adversely affect groups of people who have systematically experienced greater obstacles to health based on their racial or ethnic group; religion; socioeconomic status; gender; age; mental health; cognitive, sensory, or physical disability; sexual orientation or gender identity; geographic location; or other characteristics historically linked to discrimination or exclusion” (Healthy People 2020)(Brunner, 1915; Fort, 1915; Marmot, 2015).

Rates of premature deaths from stroke and coronary heart disease are higher among non-Hispanic blacks than among whites; drug-induced deaths are highest among American Indian/Alaska Naves and non-Hispanic whites; infant mortality rate for non-Hispanic black women was more than double that for non-Hispanic white women (CDC, 2013). Morbidity wise, diabetes prevalence is higher in non-Hispanic blacks; preterm rate for black infants was approximately 60% higher than that for white; and non-Asian racial/ethnic minorities continue to experience higher rates of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) diagnoses than whites (CDC, 2013).

Housing

Reflected in the definition of SDOH’s above is the housing component of the physical environment — the places where people “live, grow, play, and age”. An adequate shelter means more than a roof over one’s head: it means to have a home, a place which protects privacy, contributes to physical and psychological well-being, and supports the development and social integration of its inhabitants — a central place for human life (Bonnefoy, 2007).

However, according to the 2018 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, 552,830 people live on the streets or shelters at any time point. Some estimates note that up to 3.5 million people experience homelessness yearly with people of color being disproportionately affected (Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2018). In the 7th Congressional District especially Baltimore city, recent research shows homeownership is not as attainable for minorities as it is for whites. Between 2007 and 2017, Black homeownership rates sank from 45% to 42% with the Black community failing to see the same post-Great recession rebounds as other races (The Abell Report, 2020). Point-in-time counts in the city show 2,322 households, and 2,669 individuals are homeless any given night with 329 of them being children under 18 years (Baltimore City Health Department, 2017).

NOW IS THE TIME FOR ACTION

This piece presents three policy areas to prioritize that are important for the advancement of the Black community. There is no time like now to take action!

References

The Abell Report. (2020). Overcoming Barriers to Homeownership in Baltimore City. Retrieved from https://abell.org/sites/default/files/files/2020_Abell_Howeownership%20Report_FINAL2_web%20(dr).pdf.

Allen, L. (1915). The Negro health problem. Am J Public Health, 5(3), 194–203. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1286550/pdf/amjphealth00103-0012.pdf

Baltimore City Health Department. (2017). Community Health Assessment. Retrieved fromhttps://health.baltimorecity.gov/sites/default/files/health/attachments/Baltimore%20City%20CHA%20-%20Final%209.20.17.pdf.

Bonnefoy, X. (2007). Inadequate housing and health: an overview. International Journal of Environment and Pollution, 30(3–4), 411–429.

Brunner, W. F. (1915). The Negro health problem in southern cities. Am J Public Health, 5(3), 183–190. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1286547/pdf/amjphealth00103-0001a.pdf

Du Bois, W. E. B., & Eaton, I. (1899). The Philadelphia negro: A social study: Published for the University.

Fort, A. (1915). The Negro health problem in rural communities. Am J Public Health, 5(3), 191–193. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1286549/pdf/amjphealth00103-0009.pdf

Healthy People 2020. (2010). CDC health disparities and inequalities report: United States. Retrieved from https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/about/foundation-health-measures/Disparities.

Heckler, M. (1985). Report of the Secretary’s task force on Black & minority health: US Department of Health and Human Services.

Hoffman, F. L. (1926). The Negro health problem. Opportunity, 4, 119–121.

Mapping Police Violence. Retrieved from https://killedbypolice.net/.

Marmot, M. (2015). The Health Gap: The Challenge of an Unequal World: Bloomsbury Publishing.

Sinyangwe, S. (2016). Examining the Role of Use of Force Policies in Ending Police Violence. Available at SSRN 2841872.

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2011). CDC health disparities and inequalities report: United States. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/pdf/other/su6001.pdf.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. (2018). The 2018 Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress. Retrieved from https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/5783/2018-ahar-part-1-pit-estimates-of-homelessness-in-the-us/.