The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #62217

Vivian Chavez, DrPH, Health Education, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave, San Francisco, CA 94132, 415-338-1307, vchavez@sfsu.edu, Bonnie Duran, DrPH, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, 2400 Tucker NE, #147, Albuquerque, NM 87131, Quinton E. Baker, Consultant, Community Health, Leadership and Development, 2919 Ode Turner Road, Hillsborough, NC 27278, Magdalena Avila, Dr PH, MPH, MSW, Health Education Program, University of New Mexico, College of Education, Bldging 63, Albuquerque, NM 87131, and Nina B. Wallerstein, DrPH, Masters in Public Health Program, University of New Mexico, 2400 Tucker NE, School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM 87104.

There are very real issues of race/ethnicity, racism and White privilege that every researcher, whether White or a person of color, must consider when doing CBPR with communities of color. The trilogy of race/ethnicity, racism and privilege are underscored not because they are more important than other dimensions, such as social class or gender, but because they are often neglected areas of study. Privilege is one of the most important and difficult arenas for researchers to address, as it in part defines who we understand ourselves to be. To look internally at privilege conferred due to race, income, education, sexual orientation, gender or institutional affiliation forces researchers to consider how privilege permeates how they approach everything we do in our work. This acknowledgement ultimately pierces the veil of scientific objectivity.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will:
• learn a useful framework for understanding racism that addresses institutional and personally-mediated racism, as well as internalized oppression.
• explore the concept of "White privilege" and how this power imbalance can obstruct the trust and respect necessary in CBPR.
• analyze community dialogue, from a power & language framework to address the multiple ways they manifest in both the dominant society and in subordinate communities.
• identify a set of recommendations CBPR researchers can draw upon in attempting to better address issues of race, racism and privilege that often "hover at the periphery" of community research.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.