Six years after the first official declaration of racism as a public health crisis in the U.S., leaders at an APHA 2024 session discussed successes, challenges and next steps in the movement.

Five years ago, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, was the first jurisdiction to declare racism a public health issue. As of late October this year, 268 racism declarations have been declared in the U.S., with city councils, county boards and health agencies declaring most of them, according to an APHA tracking project.

At a Monday Champion Conversation, health leaders employed by cities and organizations that have made the declaration talked about its impact on communities.
While the formal statements and resolutions have no legal authority, racism declarations have utility by naming the problem, which set in motion programs and strategies to address the need for racial equity and justice, speakers said.

“It was more than symbolic for Boston,” said Bisola Ojikutu, executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission, which made its declaration in June 2020. “It was a call to action.”

The history of declaring racism a public health crisis goes back to Camara Jones, who in 2016 during her time as APHA president launched a national campaign against racism. In 2018, the Wisconsin Public Health Association passed the first racism declaration, and Milwaukee County followed one year later.

After recounting this early history, Jones said that racism is a system, while anti-racism is a process requiring action items and strategies to bring to fruition. 

Defeating racism is not a positive just for the oppressed, she said. “Racism saps the strength of the whole society.”

In May 2020, George Floyd was murdered by police at the intersection of Chicago Avenue and 38th Street in Minneapolis, leading to a flurry of declaration adoptions. Over the following month, over 800 articles were published by U.S. news media on the upsurge of resolutions, according to the Berkeley Media Studies Group. From May 2020 to August 2021, U.S. declarations rose from 13 to almost 200, the APHA tracking project shows.

One of those came from the City of Minneapolis, two months after Floyd’s murder.

“For 9 minutes and 30 seconds, the world stood still,” said Damōn Chaplin, commissioner of the city’s health department. “It was our Emmett Till moment.”  

The Minneapolis Health Department “has put the concept of racism on the table so colleagues can wrestle with how this shows up in our daily work,” Chaplin said.

The city also earmarked $5 million to turn Chicago Avenue and 38th Street into a memorial, George Floyd Square.

“I am proud the city is holding its ground and not caving to political pressure,” Chaplain said.

Boston allocated $3.5 million annually to fight racism, Ojikutu said. Funding was made possible by skimming off 20% of the allocation set aside for police overtime.

“That is a systems change, and that is a big deal,” Ojikutu said.

APHA’s tracking map links to the declarations and indicates the date when passed. Public health advocates can use the declarations as a template to draft language to share with their local policymakers.

APHA also has a storytelling feature that highlights six localities that made declarations and their efforts to advance racial equity. In addition, the Association has conducted an in-depth analysis of the formal statements and resolutions.

Photo: Damōn Chaplin and Lindsay Huse. Photo courtesy EZ Event Photography.