Gendered Racism: A Call for an Intersectional Approach

Inequities in social determinants of health (SDOH) contribute to health disparities that outweigh an individual’s ability to make healthy choices. SDOH refer to environmental conditions that affect a wide range of health, functioning, and quality of life outcomes and risks. They are complex, interdependent, and often grouped in five categories: economic stability, education access and quality, health care access and quality, neighborhood and the built environment, and social and community con- text. Within the social and community context, discrimination has increasingly received attention since the American Public Health Association established its National Campaign Against Racism (Jones, 2016a,b). Understanding, revealing, and redressing racism as a social and structural determinant of health may help eliminate racialized health disparities. Yet, for those who are at the inter- section of multiple oppressions, focusing on racism alone may not go far enough.