Tale of Two Pandemics: Illuminating Structural Racism and COVID

As the U.S. faces a global COVID-19 pandemic that has killed over 200,000 and confronts longtime and systemic racism and violence against Black Americans, researchers have highlighted a clear intersection between structural racism and high risk situations for contracting COVID. By drawing from research expertise, this panel explores the concurrent pandemics of racism and COVID, causes of inequity, and ways in which our community can address them. Panelists include:

• Dr. Rashawn Ray, Professor of Sociology, Executive Director of the Lab for Applied Social Science Research (LASSR)
• Dr. Jennifer Roberts, Assistant Professor, Kinesiology, Director of Public Health Outcomes and Effects of the Built Environment (PHOEBE) Laboratory
• Amelia Jamison, MAA, MPH, Faculty Research Affiliate at the Maryland Center for Health Equity, PhD Candidate at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
• John P. Salerno, MPH, PhD Candidate, Behavioral and Community Health, Investigator at the University of Maryland Prevention Research Center (UMD-PRC)