Racism is deadly.
Today, March 21, is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, observed annually on the day the police in Sharpeville, opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration against apartheid in 1960.
This day is now recognised globally - marked as
#HumanRightsDay in 🇿🇦 - and serves as a reminder of the ongoing struggle against oppression and inequality.
But racism is deadly not only when people can no longer breathe because of police violence.
Racism is deadly when people take their last breath because of policy violence, including global and national policies that result in people being unable to access the medicines or care that could save their lives.
When we look at the impact of health crises, it is clear that African people, people of African descent, and other racialized groups are hit harder, because of the systemic nature of racism.
Racial disparities are stark when it comes to HIV.
Of the 4,000 young women and girls aged 15-24 who become infected with HIV every week across the world, 3,100 are African.
In the United States, one in every two African American gay and bisexual men acquires HIV in his lifetime – compared to 1 in every 11 white gay and bisexual men.
The COVID crisis exposed what South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called “Global Vaccine Apartheid”. At least a million people in the Global South could still be alive today if the COVID-19 vaccine had been distributed equitably in its first year.
One life could have been saved every 24 seconds!
Systemic racism has remained wired into global economic systems. But racist systems can be unmade.
Sharing my op-ed for the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination - please share with your networks.
It is an urgent call to address systemic racism within global economic and health care systems.
An equal future is possible, if we
#FightRacism together.
#RacismDay
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