Racism Determines Black Health
Name What Is Real
Racism is not only a social problem; it is a health problem. For Black communities across the African Diaspora, race-based harm and trauma are deeply woven into the conditions of daily life. Health researchers call these conditions social determinants of health — the non-medical factors that shape how long and how well people live.
Housing, education, income, and access to care all matter. But woven through each of these is a thread too often ignored: racism itself. It is not just prejudice between individuals. Racism operates through systems, policies, and practices that disadvantage some while privileging others. This is why leading institutions like the World Health Organization (WHO), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) recognize racism as a fundamental cause of health inequities.
The Insidious Nature of Race-Based Harm
When we think of trauma, we often picture one dramatic event. But race-based trauma is different. It is insidious — subtle, cumulative, and often hidden.
Subtle: Sometimes it comes as a comment that cuts deep, though others in the room pretend not to hear it.
Cumulative: A lifetime of being overlooked, suspected, or dismissed builds up inside the body and mind.
Hidden: Because society minimizes or denies racism, many internalize the pain or learn to “push through.”
This insidious harm shows up in stress levels, blood pressure, immune function, and mental health. Researchers call this the weathering effect (Geronimus, 1992): the body ages faster and wears down earlier under the constant strain of discrimination.
The danger of insidious trauma is that it is easily dismissed. Even those who carry it may wonder if they are “making too much of it.” But the truth is this: if even the suspicion of race-based harm weighs on your spirit, it is worth protecting yourself.
Evidence We Cannot Ignore
Scholars have documented these realities for decades:
Discrimination and Health: Chronic exposure to racism produces symptoms that mirror post-traumatic stress disorder — hypervigilance, avoidance, diminished trust, and persistent anxiety (Carter & Forsyth, 2010).
Weathering: Black women in the U.S. experience accelerated health decline due to the stress of systemic racism, leading to disparities in maternal mortality and chronic illness (Geronimus, 1992).
Embodiment of Stress: Racism contributes to higher allostatic load — the “wear and tear” of stress on the body — which increases risks for cardiovascular disease and early death (Williams & Mohammed, 2009).
Intergenerational Impact: Trauma linked to racism can even leave biological markers that affect future generations (Yehuda et al., 2016).
The science is clear: race-based harm is not imagined. It is embodied, measurable, and deadly.
The Fellowship Circle Begins Here
The first step in The Phoenix Fellowship is to acknowledge oppression and release weight. This is not about blame; it is about truth. Healing cannot begin until we name what is harming us.
When you name race-based harm, you reclaim your dignity. You tell yourself:
My pain is real.
I am not imagining this.
I am not alone.
In our circles, this first step becomes a collective act of resistance. Instead of silently carrying the weight, we place it into words, into community, and into the care of God.
Reflections
Take a moment this week to reflect:
Where have I felt the insidious weight of race-based harm in my life?
Have I ever dismissed my own pain or told myself to “just get over it”?
What would it mean to begin by simply acknowledging: “This hurt me”?
Your answers matter. They are the seeds of healing.
Name It to Heal
The journey of The Phoenix Fellowship begins with honesty. By naming race-based harm as a determinant of health, we break the silence that has too often stolen our vitality. Healing is not weakness. It is wisdom.
This week, we begin with Step One: Acknowledge oppression and release the weight.
References
Carter, R. T., & Forsyth, J. M. (2010). Reactions to racial discrimination: Emotional stress and help-seeking behaviors. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 2(3), 183–191. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0020102
Comas-Díaz, L., Hall, G. N., & Neville, H. A. (2019). Racial trauma: Theory, research, and healing. American Psychologist, 74(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000442
Geronimus, A. T. (1992). The weathering hypothesis and the health of African-American women and infants: Evidence and speculations. Ethnicity & Disease, 2(3), 207–221.
Williams, D. R., & Mohammed, S. A. (2009). Discrimination and racial disparities in health: Evidence and needed research. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 32(1), 20–47. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-008-9185-0
Yehuda, R., Daskalakis, N. P., Bierer, L. M., Bader, H. N., Klengel, T., Holsboer, F., & Binder, E. B. (2016). Holocaust exposure induced intergenerational effects on FKBP5 methylation. Biological Psychiatry, 80(5), 372–380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2015.08.005