Relationships between ethnicity, racism, class and health
Saffron Karlsen, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London
Presentation at Health of Black and Ethnic Minority Communities June 2007
Outline:
Ethnic differences in health
Common explanations
Effects of racist victimisation on -
- health
- social class
- ethnic and community awareness
Explaining the relationship between ethnicity and health:
- Genes
- Attitudes and behaviours
- Environment
- Racism
- Social class
- Identity
The impact of racist victimisation on health:
- Direct health effect
- Social exclusion
- Social disadvantage
- Environmental disadvantage
- Self perception
- Community development
The impact of racist victimisation on health:
Not being ‘accepted’ as ‘British’:
[People] judge you the minute you walk into a room, they have certain expectations of you and how they… expect you to behave
I’m English, that is my number one culture…I may not be accepted but my culture is English
I always Pakistani…you can’t change…if I go out people won’t say I’m English, they will say, “oh you’re Asian… you’re coloured”
Common stigma as source of group identity:
How long have Black people been in this country and you’re still going on with this crap [distrust]?…but this is what people put on us [Black people], this stigma
It happens all the time as a Black person…I know to expect it really
Every person with colour has to learn…to restrain [from reacting to harassment]
Racism as part of everyday life
it's very, you know, downhearting because…you're not appreciated and that is very sickening…[but] you can't just shut [the shop] and say, well, I'm going home because I'm getting abuse...you've got a family to feed
…it was just accepted as it happened. You got used to being abused
Being ‘let down by the system’
Society tends to close their eye to some of the racism that goes on
Black people are not going out there [and voting] because no matter what they do nobody listens
It doesn't matter if the system isn't helping you - we help ourselves… as a group: if one is stuck we'll ask each other and then we'll find out where to go [how to help]
