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Virginia Joins Over 150 US Localities In Calling Racism A Public Health Crisis

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Maddison Pace
12:35 am

February 26, 2021

The Virginia legislature has passed to the governor’s desk a joint resolution declaring racism a public health crisis, in a sign of the state’s dedication to tackling the issue head on.

The resolution was introduced by Delegate Lashrecse D. Aird and passed in the Senate Tuesday, after passing in the House of Delegates on January 26 this year.

The declaration lays out five steps that the state can take to address systemic racism and its impact on public health:

5 STEPS

Expand VDH’s Office of Health Equity to be the primary watchdog for ensuring policies addressing racism are implemented
Make the Commission to Examine Racial Inequity in Virginia Law permanent
Establish training for all state elected officials, their staff members and state employees on recognizing racism
Create a list of definitions and terms on racism and health equity
Promote community engagement across the state on recognizing racism

Should Governor Ralph Northam add his signature as expected, the commonwealth will join 5 other states and over 150 localities to make the declaration so far.