Medical Racism from 1619 to the Present: History MattersThe COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on communities of color in the United States. In addition, the uneven and unequal distribution of vaccines is raising the issue of mistrust and vaccine hesitancy in these same communities. Lack of trust in the US healthcare system among communities of color is inextricably linked to the history of systemic racism in this country. With fewer than half of Black American adults indicating that they will definitely or probably get vaccinated against COVID-19, understanding the roots of this hesitancy—which dates back centuries—is critical to battling the disease.
Discussions of medical racism often focus on a set of famous tragic cases, while failing to address the longer history of the systematic medical neglect and abuse of African American health. Speakers on this panel will examine the roots in slavery of contemporary African American mistrust of the healthcare system, the lack of trust in medical providers fostered by experiences of everyday racism, and the African American community’s long dependence, born of necessity, on care from within the community.
Join us to explore how a deeper understanding of our history can help us promote health equity in the present.
Unequal Treatment by 
Race and Medicine in Nineteenth- and Early-Twentieth-Century America by 
The cost of racism for people of color : contextualizing experiences of discrimination by 
The immortal life of Henrietta Lacks / Rebecca Skloot
Queenie by 
Strategies for Deconstructing Racism in the Health and Human Services by 
