Today’s Topic: Systemic Racism
Public attention to racism is generally focused on the symptoms (such as a racist slur by an individual) rather than the system of racial inequity in institutions & systems such as education, healthcare, housing, criminal justice, & employment.
Systemic racism, sometimes referred to as ‘institutional racism’ is when the base system of these institutions, services, or organizations are against, in large or small ways, stated or unstated, someone of a minority group.
Option #1: Read and reflect: In 2016 -when Des Moines was named the 11th best place to live in the United States - it also was named the third-worst city for African Americans.
Six Midwestern states, including Iowa, suspend black students at more than 5 times the rate of white students.
Ten Midwestern states, including Iowa, had the largest ratio between black and white unemployment in 2017. Iowa had the seventh highest ratio in the nation.
Every Midwestern state imprisons African Americans at more than five times the rate of whites. Iowa has the third largest ratio in the nation and the second highest in the Midwest, behind Wisconsin.
At every income level, African Americans are less likely to receive preventive health care and more likely to receive lower-quality care
(Race in the Heartland: Equity, Opportunity, and Public Policy in the Midwest, by Colin Gordon)
Option #2 Read & Reflect:
“Did you know that even though America’s infant mortality rate has gone far down in the last 50 years, Black babies are still almost 2.5 times more likely to die before reaching their 1st birthday? Black mothers are 3 three times as likely to die during childbirth, Black and Hispanic mothers are more than twice as likely not to receive proper prenatal care and Native American mothers are more than 3 times less likely to receive proper care? ”
What is your reaction to the above quote? Consider watching more of the short videos produced by Race Forward (links below)
Families As a family go over a few of the questions below:
Did you know that sometimes people still treat others differently based on their skin color? Have you ever had or heard that experience?
What would you say to someone who was treating someone else poorly because of their skin color?
Additional Resources:
What is Systemic Racism Video Series by Race Forward An 8-part video series that shows how racism shows up in our lives across institutions and society: Wealth Gap, Employment, Housing Discrimination, Government Surveillance, Incarceration, Drug Arrests, Immigration Arrests, Infant Mortality… yes, systemic racism is really a thing. (videos average 1 minute in length)
What is Systemic Racism? by USCCB ‘Open Wide Our Hearts’ addendum to the bishop’s pastoral letter
What It’s Like to Black in Iowa: Continuing the Conversation by WHO-13. Courtnei Caldwell and Anthony Pawnell are two community activists in Iowa. They sat down with WHO 13’s Jodi Long and Dan Winters to discuss what it is like to be black living in Iowa and what needs to change.
The Day You Begin, book read aloud with Jacqueline Woodson by Storytime with Little Book Nook. A good book for helping every child seeing how they or others sometimes feel like an outsider and how we can share our stories to bring ourselves together.