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Abstract #146145

Makani Themba-Nixon, The Praxis Project, 1750 Columbia Rd, NW, Second Floor, Washington, DC 20009, (202) 234-5921, mthemba@thepraxisproject.org

Public policy change is critical to achieving health equity, but social movements that pressure government and other key actors are a precondition to the adoption of policies that advance equity and justice. How can we as public health practitioners help build a compelling movement for health equity?

Unnatural Causes has emerged as an effective tool for this movement. Advocates are convening screenings, forums, town meetings, and trainings around the country. They are assisted by the series companion Web Site, Discussion Guides, Neighborhood Health Justice Report Cards, Community Action Tool-Kit and other tools, all geared towards pushing the health dialog “upstream” and building this movement.

Using a guided dialog, participants will be introduced to the support tools and begin to identify opportunities where they can use the series to educate, organize or advocate. We will discuss the distinctions between these three uses, review case studies, and begin a planning process that can yield successful events, including how to identify possibilities within and outside the health community, contextualize screenings, conduct follow-up discussions, and determine appropriate next steps.

Learning Objectives:

• Better understand the distinction between educating, organizing and advocacy and their respective roles in policy change.
• Identify and evaluate opportunities for using Unnatural Causes and companion tools to educate, organize and advocate.
• Develop preliminary plans for using Unnnatural Causes to inject equity and social justice—around housing, racism, education, jobs and wages, community development, social supports and tax policy—into discussions of health; and introduce health consequences into debates over social and economic policy.
• Become familiar with the support tools that can help them plan and carry out successful screenings / events.

Keywords: Advocacy, Social Justice

Related Web page: www.thepraxisproject.org/

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No
Any institutionally-contracted trials related to this submission?

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.