I am a Black woman who was adopted by White parents from the child welfare system and I have been aware of the fight for racial equality all my life. But it was not until five years ago, in the course of my work, that I began to focus on equal. This is the idea that we must align resources, transform systems, and remove impediments to create fair and equitable opportunities and outcomes for Blacks, Indigenous peoples, and people of color. (BIPOC) so that they are supported towards success.
As an assistant administrator for Broward County in Florida, I am reviewing data from our child welfare system and affected by disparities and disparities. Black families are divided into two ZIP codes, with child rejection rates two and three times higher than white families.
At that moment, I knew that we had to identify the root causes of disparities reflected in systems that continued to be racist – while trying to help people – and often roadblocks. for the health of BIPOC in this country.
I contacted the Urban League of Broward County, a social services agency that works with BIPOC communities, to ask for their help in addressing child welfare disparities. That initial partnership set our county on a path toward what seemed like a bold goal.
But this goal is the only way we can foster a healthier community for all: We aim to be an anti-racism county where race is no longer a factor. predict success in our service system.
Beyond ‘representative’
Broward County is about one-third Hispanic, one-third Black, and one-third White. Within those racial classifications are additional aspects of diversity, with African Americans, Caribbean Americans of different national ancestry, and people of Central and Latin American ancestry. The county’s workforce reflects this rich diversity.
But as the results for children of color in the county’s child welfare system illustrated, a person of any race can internalize implicit racist and prejudiced assumptions. , such as making black children more likely to be removed from their families, incarcerated in secure facilities, or disciplined in school for behaviors that are normalized toward their Black peers. their white.
So we implemented a comprehensive training program that goes beyond unconscious awareness and implicit bias to directly address systemic racism, shifting the focus away from bigotry. individual. Having a common language and analytics underpinning allows us to communicate effectively as we create new services, policies, and processes using an anti-discrimination lens.
To date, we have trained more than 3,000 people, including service recipients, businesses, law enforcement, social service agencies, local school boards (including employees and students), and the public health department.
Build infrastructure to support lasting change
Racial equity training is just the beginning. We are building a “supporting infrastructure” so people can really practice what they are learning and support lasting change. We hold a conditional debate session after each training workshop to help participants navigate the new emotions they experience, such as excitement, anger, and sadness, and explore questions they may face.
White, Black, and Latinx caucuses also meet monthly to further analyze the issue of racism and racial justice by reading books or watching videos about racism and equality racial equality. They engage in constant facilitated conversations about how a counterfactual philosophy plays out in practice.
Here are additional ways the county is working to become antisemitism:
- We are constantly evaluating our progress towards becoming anti-Semitism. Each agency then works to change policies and practices that inadvertently perpetuate racial segregation or racist practices. For example, over the past few years, Broward County Human Services has been examining its claims against the nonprofit service providers they fund to make sure we’re not excluding any groups. any. In our current funding cycle, we’ve encouraged organizations to take an anti-religious approach when catering primarily to BIPOC audiences. That means committing to being antisemitism by participating in training and conducting organizational reviews. Our next funding cycle will require these steps.
- Last December, the Broward County Commission approved the creation of a racial equity task force to hold the county accountable for its goals. The commission also approved a police and criminal justice panel, called after the murder of George Floyd last year. The panel will examine and seek to correct disparities in the criminal justice system, from arrest rates to sentencing rates.
- Our business community has also grown significantly. The Broward County Chamber of Commerce, Broward Alliance Prosperity Partners, and others have prioritized racial equity as an issue that needs to be addressed through improving access to resources such as employment, education, and training. education and self-sufficiency.
- The “fairness liaisons” in all of our 250 public schools create plans to increase equity in each school. The district is also training high school students in anti-religious analysis so that, as they mature, they can bring anti-religious views to their school or workplace.
- The Florida Department of Health in Broward County is continuing to focus on health equity through the lens of racial equity, particularly in the context of COVID-19 response and mitigation strategies.
Groundswell nationwide
Broward County strongly supports anti-discrimination efforts for a number of reasons. Our demographic diversity helps. When structural racism directly impacts enough people in a community, it cannot be ignored. In addition, we are called “collaborative particles”. We have a special group of leaders from all over the world that get together every month to discuss the most common issues in our community. They are committed to investing resources to eliminate structural racism — because doing so is not free.
I am energized to know that communities across the country have also embarked on this work. Last fall, I had the honor of speaking on this topic in a panel with representatives from three other communities, such as Broward County, which have received the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Health Culture Award.
In Richmond, Virginia, once the headquarters of the confederacy, they are grappling with the historical wrongs that cause inequality today, from slavery to red rule. In Kansas City, Missouri, the health department building now sits on the street that separates the city’s historic Black and White neighborhoods, serving as a powerful metaphor for the current focus. city is to reduce inequality and address the underlying causes of poor health. And Klamath County, Oregon, is taking steps to become more inclusive with Tribal and immigrant populations in its health promotion efforts.
Every community can address systemic racism. It is the only way to ensure equitable health for everyone in the United States.
Learn more about Award-winning communities, visit www.rwjf.org/prize.
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