The MCPHS DEI Team, Office of Inclusion, and the MCPHS Libraries are co-sponsoring this year's Juneteenth celebrations. This year, we are having virtual book discussions for students, staff, and faculty of Dr. Keisha Ray's book Black Health: The Social, Political and Cultural Determinants of Black People’s Health, and on June 18, Dr. Keisha Ray will join the campus community to discuss her book.
This guide has been created as a companion for these events, as well as to share resources about Juneteenth.
Information About the Event
The MCPHS DEI Team, Office of Inclusion, and MCPHS Libraries would like to invite MCPHS students, staff, and faculty to participate in a virtual book club discussion on Dr. Keisha Ray's book, Black Health: The Social, Political and Cultural Determinants of Black People’s Health prior to her presentation. Space is limited in the book club discussion groups, so be sure to register soon!
The event will be held online via Zoom on the following dates for students, staff, and faculty:
Accessing the Book
Registrants will receive a free copy of the book while supplies last. Additionally, limited copies of the book will be available in all three campus libraries.
Want to participate? Register for the event!
Information About the Event
Dr. Keisha Ray will join the campus community to discuss her book, Black Health: The Social, Political, and Cultural Determinants of Black People's Health.on June 18, 2024. The MCPHS DEI Team, Office of Inclusion, and MCPHS Libraries invite all students, staff, and faculty to attend this presentation as part of the MCPHS Juneteenth celebrations.
This event will be held both in-person on the Boston Campus in Reed Hall (W204) as well as online via Zoom.
Want to participate? Register for the event!
Black Health: The Social, Political, and Cultural Determinants of Black People's Health by Keisha Ray
"Why do American Black people generally have worse health than American white people? To answer this question, Black Health dispels any notion that Black people have inferior bodies that are inherently susceptible to disease. This is simply false racial science used to justify white supremacy and Black inferiority. A genuine investigation into the status of Black people's health requires us to acknowledge that race has always been a powerful social category that gives access to the resources we need for health and wellbeing to some people, while withholding them from other people."
"Systemic racism, oppression, and white supremacy in American institutions have largely been the perpetrators of differing social power and access to resources for Black people. It is these systemic inequities that create the social conditions needed for poor health outcomes for Black people to persist. An examination of social inequities reveals that is no accident that Black people have poorer health than white people. Black Health provides a succinct discussion of Black people's health, including the social, political, and at times cultural determinants of their health. Using real stories from Black people, Ray examines the ways in which Black people's multiple identities--social, cultural, and political--intersect with American institutions--such as housing, education, environmentalism, and health care--to facilitate their poor outcomes in pregnancy and birth, pain management, sleep, and cardiovascular disease."