How Anti-Black Bias in White Men Hurts Black Men’s Health

January 25, 2019

Researchers have documented “large, pervasive and persistent” racial inequalities in the U.S. Inter-group relations are among the factors that contribute to such disparities, many of which manifest themselves in gaps in health care.

Although racism and discrimination affect both genders and all ethnic minority groups, assistant professor of psychiatry at University of Michigan, Shervin Assari’s studies suggest that black males’ health takes the largest hit from racism.

And, Assari’s recent study suggests that white men have more negative attitudes against blacks than do white women. This is very troubling as white men hold the highest level of social power in the U.S. This is also one reason black men experience more discrimination and are more vulnerable to discrimination than black women.

Unfair treatment of black males has been consistently documented by all sources of power, from police, judges, teachers, and employers.

Studies have shown that black men are disproportionately shot and killed by the police, stopped, arrested, incarcerated and jailed. Black men are also over-represented in U.S. prisons. While there are two times more black women than white women in prison, black men are six times more likely than white men to spend some time in prison. Thus, the problem of mass incarceration is not an issue of race but an issue of race and gender.

These encounters marginalize black men in the U.S. society, and harm their health. Only a small proportion of them successfully climb the social ladder. And when they do, society discriminates against them more, which puts them at high risk of depression and depressive symptoms.

While racism and discrimination impact education outcomes of both genders, black boys are more commonly discriminated and more strongly affected by it at schools, than black girls. As a result, black boys are most likely to drop out of school. Given that school drop out reduces future health and well-being of people, black men are at a relative disadvantage compared to other race by gender groups.