Historically, race was framed biologically to promote and justify slavery, colonialism, and the eugenics movement (NHGRI). These systems of oppression valued white Eurocentric views and capital (knowledge systems, physical bodies, culture and so on) above all others, leading to the creation of an artificial power dynamic between races (Krieger, 2020).
This social construct continues to perpetuate systematic advantages and disadvantages across the life course (social determinants of health) and between generations today.
See the RCOG eLearning Global Women's Health module for further discussion of these concepts.
Why do we need to tackle racism?
- Impact on staff
- Impact on patients:
- medical racism can lead to increased maternal deaths
- suboptimal management of medical conditions
- delayed detection of cancers in minorities.
Terminologies
It is important to be able to define these terms in order to:
- avoid confusion
- have a common language that allows cohesive research and policy over a period of time.
Terms that will be defined in this tutorial
- Race
- Ethnicity
- Unconscious bias
- Discrimination:
- direct
- indirect
- harassment
- victimisation
- Minoritisation.