Celebrating Black History Month: Acknowledging Race-based Issues of Today
Despite this being the 27th celebration of Black History Month in Canada, individuals still face race-based issues today. Racial discrimination has become embedded within varying aspects of society, harming the livelihood of Black individuals. In this blog, we discuss how racial stereotypes and health disparities have maintained the oppression of Black individuals.
What is Black History Month?
As you probably know from your countless years in school, February is Black History Month, which is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans/ Canadians and a time to recognize their central role in history. This month gives us an opportunity to understand Black histories, go beyond stories of racism and slavery to spotlight Black achievements. Black people and their communities have been a part of shaping Canada’s heritage and identity since the arrival of Mathieu Da Costa, a navigator and interpreter, whose presence in Canada dates to the early 1600s. In 1995, Canada’s House of Commons officially recognized February as Black History Month and honored Black Canadians.
We will take this month to reflect on the Black experience with respect to mental health in the Black community. The historical Black and African American experience in North America has and continues to be characterized by violence and trauma. This impacts emotional and mental health of both youth and adults. Historical dehumanization, violence and oppression against the Black community has evolved into present day institutional, structural, and individual racism. Dealing with layers of individual trauma on top of new mass traumas from COVID-19, grief from financial or human losses, police brutality and divisive political rhetoric builds compounding layers of complexity for individuals to responsibly manage.
Racial Stereotypes
Negative racial stereotypes harm the livelihood of Black individuals. Young Black men especially have been stereotyped as threatening, unintelligent, violent, and poor. In major media outlets, these males are frequently associated with poverty and criminality. Even in entertainment media, these associations are perpetuated especially in the context of portraying Black male characters as victims and perpetrators of violence. Such repetitive display of Black males in the media has reinforced certain negative stereotypes within the public mind. As a result, Black males are often subject to racial profiling which creates various obstacles throughout their life.
Within the workplace, one study found that white job interviewers sat further away from Black applicants than from white applicants and ended the interviews 25% faster. Another study showed that resumes with stereotypically white names received 50% more callbacks than resumes with stereotypically black names.
But it does not stop there. Racial profiling limits the fundamental freedom of many Black individuals. In Vancouver between 2008–2017, 5% of street checks involved Black individuals when they only represented less than 1% of the population. In Ottawa as of 2016, black drivers were 2.3 times more likely to be pulled over than the dominant population. And unfortunately, racial profiling can lead to even more drastic consequences. In Toronto between 2013 and 2017, Black individuals were nearly 20 times more likely than a White person to be shot dead by the Police. These statistics coupled with the numerous stories we see of police mistreatment of Black individuals is absolutely horrific. Such trauma has been embedded within the Black experience, with the potential to create negative impacts on mental and physical health. Black individuals should not have to live in fear each day. And so, racial stereotypes held collectively by our society must be overcome to stop the oppression of Black communities.
Black Men, Health, and Healthcare
For the Black population, there are prevalent inequities in health outcomes and healthcare quality. This makes it much more difficult for the Black population to achieve upward mobility, as mental and physical health is vital for performing well in school and beyond. Black men have the highest age adjusted death rate any major identity group in the United States. On average, Black men live 5.4 years less than white men. There are also disparities with regards to disease, shorter survival, and higher death rates with those diagnosed with cancer. Other conditions such as asthma, high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke are also more common amongst Black men. African Americans have higher rates of obesity in almost every American state, higher rates amongst women than men. According to the Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health, Black men in the North America are more likely to report persistent symptoms of emotional distress than white men. In addition, Black men living below poverty are more than twice as likely to report serious psychological distress than those with more financial security. When it comes to the medical system, it is seen in MHA screening data that Black and African American men who screen positive for depression, plan to seek help at a higher rate than the general population. However, Black, and African American providers make up a very small portion of the behavioral health provider workforce. These factors and many more are the reason Black and African American people are more likely to experience chronic and persistent mental health conditions.
The reason for these health disparities is multivaried. Lack of access to appropriate health care, along with documented racism and bias within the healthcare system, have made some people in the Black community less likely to seek treatment from a medical professional. Not only that, but the lack of access to services is also a huge factor that prevents adequate health care. Resources for health treatment can be very expensive and without health insurance and having demanding shift jobs and living in locations with few services can be a huge disadvantage.
Furthermore, expectations surrounding Black masculinity, such as having to be strong and stoic, have prevented Black men from seeking mental health care. The exposure to racism and discrimination are greatly linked to various adverse mental health outcomes
Socioeconomic factors such as income, education, employment, community safety and social supports can significantly affect the well-being of Black men and decrease treatment options. As health challenges continue to rise in this community, some Black Americans still cannot receive health care and the treatment that they need. This is especially true for Black men, because of the general barrier to medical treatment that many in the Black community face on everyday basis. Black men who also have internalized certain behaviors that fit within the social constructs of Black masculinity, ultimately impacts their help-seeking behaviors.
Highlights into a Few Possible Policy Solutions
Raising awareness regarding racial disparities is the most important initial precondition as we live in a democracy and to influence future policy, this awareness must spread throughout our institutions and the populace.
Increased healthcare coverage is important to improve health outcomes. In Canada this may not be a problem, but within the United States, a method to decrease the intensity of disparities is insuring more people within the Black community.
The US educational system is one of the most unequal in providing schooling in the developed world. To get an idea of the level of this inequality, the top 10 percent of US school districts spend tenfold more than the poorest 10 percent. Therefore, revising current educational spending is needed by altering spending formulas to improve lower income communities’ school and increasing spending in general towards schooling. This can improve the quality of teachers, curriculum, and facilities for Black students. All such improvements can have a profound effect on later educational achievement and employment. But these benefits may not only be confined within the USA, Canada can also improve educational opportunities within low-income communities through revising educational spending policies.
Early childhood development: inequities become evident during the most sensitive years of life, childhood. Through pushing for funding for early childhood intervention programs, there is evidence of lifelong impacts in terms of higher income, increased rates of high school completion, lower levels of crime, and other positive outcomes became evident through intervention.
All in all, pushing for policy solutions can possibly remedy the inequities amongst the Black population. The policy solutions suggested here are only the tip of the iceberg. More generally, we all need to take a thorough look into repealing laws that knowingly maintain inequities and reassessing laws that seem to maintain inequities unknowingly.
Resources for Black Individuals and Allies
Across Boundaries (https://www.acrossboundaries.ca/) — Provides mental health and addiction services for racialized communities “Across Boundaries provides a dynamic range of mental health support and services and works within Anti-Racism/Anti-Black racism and Anti-Oppression frameworks.”
Black Mental Health Alliance (https://www.blackmentalhealth.com/) — Develop, promote and sponsor trusted culturally-relevant educational forums, trainings and referral services that support the health and well-being of Black people and their communities.
Black Men Heal (https://blackmenheal.org/) — Provide access to mental health treatment, psycho-education, and community resources to men of colour.
Building Allies (https://www.buildingallies.org/anti-racism-resources/) — An educational and training organization that helps empower individuals with the tools they need to become active-allies to turn privilege into change.
Black Health Alliance (https://blackhealthalliance.ca/about/) — a community-led registered charity working to improve the health and well-being of Black communities in Canada.
