Yes, all lives matter, but really, #BlackLivesMatter. Because being white means we have not been subject to the institutional racism that was mixed into the mortar that holds together the bricks of our country’s foundation.
Being white means we have the luxury of avoiding long-term health effects of internal toxic stress caused by institutional racism.
#AllLivesMatter diminishes people of colors’ experiences. The experience that leads to parents of color teaching their sons not to wear hooded sweatshirts at night, or worrying that their child may not receive the same medical treatment as the fair-skinned girl next to them in a waiting room. They worry that their children might not get a job because of their skin color or hair texture.
Similar to what we asked after Orlando, Charleston and Ferguson: What venue, what shooter, what motive will finally shine light on the root of these devastating stories? What will it take our for leaders to acknowledge the role institutional racism has played in this sadness? When will we see policy changes to build inclusive systems?
We can both mourn the police officers killed in Dallas and be outraged at the larger narrative of the story. Research shows that racism manifests itself everywhere – not just in the judicial system.
How many more children of color will be treated differently because of their doctors’ implicit biases? How many more teens of color will end up in a stereotypical downward spiral because their parents’ skin color has prevented them from providing safe housing and jobs to support their family?
It is time to stand up and demand change.
Ryan Williams-Virden wrote, “to fail to do this is to betray humanity, it is to betray ourselves.” The New Hampshire Public Health Association is works to achieve health equity for all New Hampshire residents, and urges our elected officials to guide peaceful action, and begin to unravel the policies and systems that damage the health and lives of so many Americans.
(Katie Robert is president of the New Hampshire Public Health Association.)