Vocabulary To Know:
-Racial discrimination- Any individual treated less favorable on the basis of their skin color, or racial or ethnic group.
-Injustice- Where the unequal gets treated equally while the equals get treated unequally.
-Stress- The feeling of being overwhelmed or unable to cope with mental and emotional pressure.
-Anxiety- An emotion characterized by feelings of tension, worried thoughts and physical changes like increased blood pressure.
-depression- A mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest.
-racial trauma- result of ongoing exposure to racial stressors.
-hypertension- A condition in which the force of the blood against the artery wall is too high.
-inflammation- A physical condition in which part of the body becomes reddened, swollen, hot, and painful.
-physiological functioning- The ability to achieve his or her goals within him or her self and the external environment.
-Brain damage- Injury to the brain that impairs its functions, especially permanently.
-Segregation- The action or state of setting someone or something apart from other people or things or being set apart.
-Growing development- progressive acquisition of various skills (abilities) such as head support, speaking, learning, expressing the feelings and relating with other people.
Experiencing racial discrimination and injustice can take an emotional toll and trigger chronic stress, anxiety, depression, and racial trauma. Someone who is black or a different minority, experiencing racism and discrimination is often a daily but overlooked reality.
Effects Of Physical Health In Adults:
Racism is associated with higher rates of stress, which can lead to higher rates of blood pressure. In addition, the CDC reports that black people are more likely to have hypertension than other racial or ethnic groups. Stress, as a result of racism, can lead to other behaviors that may cause further risk to physical health. For example, discrimination is linked to higher rates of smoking, alcohol use, drug use, and unhealthy eating habits. Another study has found that racist experiences can cause increased inflammation in African Americans, which raises their risk of chronic conditions like heart disease and kidney problems. Discrimination has a consequential effect of sleep and psychological functioning in midlife. Physical health ties in with mental health, and it is proven that racism and discrimination negatively effects the physical health of people.
Effects Of Physical Health In Children:
Children who face racism growing up have a higher risk of brain damage. Children of color often times do not have access to a lot of education because of discrimination in schools. Segregation in the U.S. has caused a lot of segregation in health care environments, which leads to black children not having the right health care, which can lead to serious injury or mental conditions. Racism can affect a child's growing development, just by the way they cope with discrimination.
This goes to show that racism has a lot more to the picture than we see.
As a society we need to learn to accept our differences. Because NOBODY should feel afraid to live their life, just because of their skin color.
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