Citation

Rexing CJ, Hohl BC, Johnson R, Ramirez M, Carlson KF, Cruz TH. Inj. Prev. 2020; 26(5): 502-503.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, BMJ Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1136/injuryprev-2020-043941

PMID

32958566

Abstract

The brutal killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and others sparked widespread protests for racial and economic justice in the USA and around the globe. A fundamental principle espoused by the Black Lives Matter movement and other groups involved in direct action is that our most enduring social problems are rooted in structural factors and must therefore be addressed with structural solutions. (In this context, 'structural' refers to elements of social systems that provide a foundation for how societies operate, such as policies, norms, religion and other belief systems and economies.) This principle is as relevant to injury and violence as it is to other health and social problems; disparities in injury outcomes are closely connected to social inequities.1

At this critical point in history, we are called to confront the influence of structural factors on injury and violence directly. Giles and colleagues2 recently recommended that we incorporate equity as the fourth 'e' in injury prevention. Building on their recommendation, we argue that it is critical to highlight structural racism as a determinant of injury and violence. Structural racism is at hand …

Language: en