The dangerous heat wave sitting over two-thirds of the country comes two weeks after the globe’s average temperature was the highest recorded in 12,000 years. In Phoenix, one of the fastest-growing cities for Black people, temperatures have topped 110 degrees for three weeks straight. In Houston, the heat index pushed 110 degrees for multiple days. […]
health disparities
Posted inHealth, Health Equity
As Heat Scorches Texas, Lawmakers Loosen Worker Protections
Eugene Gates worked for the U.S. Postal Service for nearly 40 years before dying on his route in Dallas. On that day in mid-June, the heat index hit 115 degrees, the highest since 1980. The exact cause of death has yet to be confirmed, but his wife and others attribute it to the brutal heat […]
Posted inHealth, Health Equity
Why the Warning Against BMI Won’t Ease Bias Toward Black Patients
The American Medical Association’s recent warning against the use of body mass index may be a step in the right direction — but longtime critics of the metric worry it won’t fix bias in health care assessments. It has been criticized for years because of its racist history, and many advocates and dietitians have questioned […]
Posted inHealth, Reproductive Health
80% of Black Women Experience Fibroids. Does Racial Trauma Play a Role?
This story was produced in partnership with Vox as part of the discrimination issue of The Highlight. Comedian Dulcé Sloan took to Twitter recently with a burning health question: “Soooo EVERY black woman has fibroids,” she wrote, injecting a bit of hyperbole, “and no one knows why?!” The tweet sparked a flurry of responses theorizing why 80% of […]
Posted inHealth, Maternal Health
Tori Bowie’s Death Shows the Severity of Our Maternal Mortality Crisis
Three-time Olympic champion Tori Bowie’s death from childbirth complications underscores the alarming reality that Black women are more likely to face the worst pregnancy-related outcomes in the U.S., regardless of socioeconomic status. Bowie was found dead in her home in Winter Garden, Florida, in May. She was estimated to be eight months pregnant and in […]
Posted inHealth, Health Equity
Racism’s Relentless Toll on Black Health in America
This story was produced in partnership with Vox as part of the discrimination issue of The Highlight. OAKLAND, Calif. — On most warm days, Stephanie McWoods catches the California breeze with the bubble wand she keeps on her patio. Sometimes, the bubbles float, then burst midair. Other times, when they don’t pop, it is unclear how many miles […]
Posted inHealth, Mental Health
How Mental Illness Among Black Americans Goes Misdiagnosed
First, came the depression diagnosis. Then, a catatonia diagnosis. PTSD and anxiety labels were thrown in the mix, too. In college, 12 people Natasha Pierre knew had died within six months, and all she could do was talk to the campus priests about how she was feeling. The trauma piled on, and being in New […]
Posted inHealth, Reproductive Health
What is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, and Why Does It Go Underdiagnosed in Black Women?
My body stiffened at the news I received from my OB-GYN. I had been anxiously waiting for the results from a uterine ultrasound, a test that I desperately hoped would get to the root of my immensely painful and irregular periods. I had suffered in silence for years, then spent at least one more traveling […]
Posted inClimate Change, Environmental Justice, Partner Content
History of Racism Leaves Black Californians Most at Risk from Oil and Gas Drilling, Research Shows
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, independent news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. It is republished with permission. Sign up for their newsletter here. Decades before movie moguls produced celluloid heroes, oil claimed the spotlight in Los Angeles. California’s oil industry took off in the mid-1870s just 30 miles […]
Posted inAir Pollution, Environmental Justice
What Happens When a Black Enclave Is Built by Big Oil
When Tara Bettis is at her home in Beaumont, Texas, the 57-year-old doesn’t need a clock to know what time it is. Her body instinctively knows based on the pitches of whistles and bells ringing from her neighbor’s property: a massive, land-gobbling oil refinery and chemical plant owned by ExxonMobil. “Everybody knows the whistles — […]