Tomorrow, at their regular meeting, Sonoma County Board of Supervisors will consider declaring racism as a public health crisis. The COVID pandemic made visible the disproportionate health impacts borne by communities of color. Black people, who make up only 13 percent of the U.S. population, accounted for 25 percent of COVID-19 deaths. That is 2.3 percent more than white people, who represent around 60 percent of the county’s population. Director of Health Services Tina Rivera said in a statement “Poverty, inadequate access to housing, employment and good health, as well as the likelihood of intersections with the justice system, are unacceptable and, unfortunately, common outcomes of institutional racism.” She further stated “The primary goal of the resolution is to clarify the need to do more to prevent the trauma and harm associated with racial inequity.”
Sonoma County Supervisors Consider Declaring Racism a Public Health Crisis
