High-profile police shootings and deaths of black men in custody — or even while out jogging — bring cries of racism across the country. The May 25 death of George Floyd by a white police officer in Minneapolis and the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery in Brunswick, Georgia on Feb. 23, 2020 by a white father and son have resulted in outrage and protests in cities across the U.S.
But, as a public health researcher who studies the effects of racism on the health of black men, I have found that the life-and-death effects of racism in the U.S. go far beyond police shootings. I also have found that, while racism harms many groups of people, black men are paying the highest cost.
As a result of racism, and associated poverty and injustice, life expectancy at birth of black men is 71.9 years, far bellow white women (81.2), black women (78.5), and white men (76.4). These are mainly because of black men’s higher risk of dying from several types of cancer, stroke, HIV, and homicide. Despite overall declining numbers of homicide in the U.S., homicide remains the number one cause of death for black males 10 to 24.
My research and that of many others strongly links these deaths and poor physical and mental health outcomes in general to racism. For black men in the U.S., racism is a daily experience that harms their health and leads to chronic disease and poor health. About 66% of blacks report high levels of day-to-day racial discrimination.
