Relationships between ethnicity, racism, class and health

Saffron Karlsen, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London

s.karlsen@ucl.ac.uk

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:

Direct health effect
Social exclusion
Social disadvantage
Environmental disadvantage
Self perception
Community development

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]

Acknowledgements:

James Nazroo

ESRC

Department of HealthHSE,EMPIRIC and ME teams

last updated 15/06/07