Race Based Critical Theory Essay
Though legal segregation and discrimination on the premise of racial difference was outlawed by the early to mid 1900s, there is still obvious inequality between races in the United States, specifically black and white citizens. The purpose of this paper is to shine light on this current inequality, specifically showcasing why black and white americans are not treated the same within the medical field. By incorporating the views of the of race-based critical theory, there will be a discussion on how inequalities continue to manifest within the medical health of citizens. Government agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and the National Cancer Institute have long noted distinct, statistical difference between medical race data. This has, in turn, led to many researchers and sociologists to collect more data and developing theories for the disparities.
Theoretical Framework The concept of race-based critical theory stems from the broader idea of critical theory. Critical theory is unlike other sociological theories because it incorporates direct evaluation of society based upon a holistic awareness of the fault of the society in question. The basis of this theory is a concept of moral goodness and fixing …show more content…
inequality in the structure of societies. “A race-based critical theory can be defined as critical theory that puts race -- not just racial injustices and inequalities but racial ideologies and identities as well as racial ways of thinking about and rationalizing existing social arrangements more generally -- at the forefront of its analytics lens onto the social world” (Hartmann & Bell, p. 233).
Race-based critical theory does not ignore the fact, but rather incorporates, that race is a defining feature of current social structure.
Sociologists have divided this theory into four defining factors. First, how race is a defining feature of modern society. Second, how current structure of race is unjust and unequal. Third, how differences in race and inequalities are constructed from social relationships. Lastly, how culture and social interacts continue the racial divided system. Previous theories that have attempted to analyze current social arrangements have been detrimentally color-bind. Color blind theories ignore the facts of inequality while race-based critical theory brilliantly uses it to understand systematic relations of
society. The concept of critical theory can be applied to concepts other than race including class based critical theory. By placing social class at the center, sociologists can attempt to explain its application into society. In the United States, the poor are significantly segregated from the rich and this imbalance affects their everyday lives and function in society. Class based critical theory would first, put class as a defining feature of modern society. Second, explain how current social class arrangements are unjust and unequal. Third, state how class differences are constructed and enhanced through social relationships. Fourth, current class differences are maintained through culture and society.
Methodology
Data has consistently shown disparities while comparing the health of black and white Americans. The National Cancer Institute (NIH, 2008) states that when combining all cancer, black Americans have a 25% higher death rate when compared to whites. Black mothers have significantly less prenatal care and deliver more premature babies than white mothers. “The average lifespan of (black) male is 72.3 years...4 years shorter than the overall male average in the average in the U.S… (black) women live an average of 78 years, which is nearly 3 years shorter than the American average for women” (Du Pre, p. 133). The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has studied consistently since the 1980s that hypertension is significantly more prevalent in black women and men when compared to white and hispanic men. The CDC has also noted that both black women and men have higher death rates with hypertension, heart attack, and stroke when compared to white men. Across the medical field, black americans have statistically shown to be at a disadvantage compared to white americans. Distrust of those in power of institutions has been a long and rightful bias of racial minorities, but there have been specific, and much too recent, reasons why there is distrust in the medical field from minority citizens within the United States. The most notable, single occurrence that gave black Americans fear and indifference towards the medical field was the Tuskegee Syphilis Study. This infamous study was conducted in Alabama, by the United States Public Health Service, beginning in 1932, to test the long term effects of untreated syphilis in black males. Common misunderstanding of this case had led many to believe the researchers infected the the almost 400 black men. This is incorrect, as the men had contracted syphilis before entering the study. The facts are that the experimenters did not make them aware that they had syphilis, they only knew the study was of “bad blood” and experimenters did not give the known treatment of penicillin . The researchers allowed the men to infect their spouses and children, barred the men from seeking medical help, and even went as far as to blacklist the men from being drafted into the military in fear they would lose their study participants. Since the outlawing of slavery and segregation, or society as a whole has continued to keep the old systems subtle inequality by institutionalizing racial discrimination. One aspect that upholds the perpetual loop of racial inequality is the geographic segregation of blacks into poor, urban areas. As white americans continue to move to suburbs, black americans are left in the crumbling cities and funding to every aspect of their life, schools, infrastructure, and hospitals, is sucked away. As shown generation after generation, growing up impoverished is a likely sign that one will be impoverished as an adult. These black segregated locations give lead to black children growing up with less skill educations, less prestigious colleges if they can afford higher education, worse paying jobs, and overall less opportunities than white counterparts. This cycle translates back to medical inequalities in two ways. First is, continuing the cycle from above, when opportunities are limited, especially job opportunities, people cannot afford to miss any day of work for medical reasons, whether it be a checkup or severe pain. Also, less prestigious jobs carry worse insurance, so if anything is wrong, they may not be able to afford it. The second aspect is that those residing in cities are more exposed to pollutants, chemicals, and the ever growing fast food corporations and a filthy, but cheaper option to keep themselves and their families fed.
A multitude of intersecting effect come together to direct differences in medical treatment favoring white patients over black patients. Doctors located within hospitals that commonly serve poorer, majority black populations receive less funding, less qualified employees, and can not provide care that measures to multibillion dollar, high tech hospitals.
“Hospitals in Black neighborhoods have fewer technological resources (eg, imaging technology) and fewer specialists (eg, cardiac surgeons, oncologists), which results in missed opportunities for early intervention in cancers and a tendency to diagnose and treat symptoms rather than underlying diseases” (Landrine and Corral, p.180).
Even without accounting for specific hospital setting, the demographics of doctors do not match the population. In the United States, the Census Bureau has released data that, even though black and hispanic americans combined make up 30% of the national population, they only constitute for 12% of physicians, 18.5% of registered nurses, and 14% of pharmacists. With these facts, it can be seen that it is likely that a patient who is black will not receive a black care provider. It is a known fact that people will communicate better and feel more comfortable with a person who they feel similar to. Even with unmatched patient to doctor races, Universities are not teaching prospective doctors how to properly treat all patients when it is obviously an issue. It has also been studied, by Balsa and McGuire (Escarce, 2005), that even when physicians are not personally racist or discriminatory, many will practice racial categorizing behaviors in their medical practice. Black patients are much more likely to be recommended lower cost medical options and often not made aware of higher priced ones. This can be attributed to the racial stereotype that blacks can not afford costly things. While this may be true for some people; and as discussed before, it has stemmed from historic inequality and segregation, as an entire race, with no other factors, patients with black skin are not being offered the best medical treatment.
Discussion
As discussed within this paper, many intersecting aspects of society have led to the current racial disparities within the United States medical field. This data can be analysed by the components of race-based critical theory. The first component, how race is a defining feature of modern society, is proven by the mere facts of history, slavery, and the black/white segregation based on race. The second component, how current structure of race is unjust and unequal is noted within the medical field data with black americans being affected more and dying more compared with whites. The third component, how differences in race and inequalities are constructed from social relationships, can be seen as a factor of health disparity by observing the institutionalized loop of stigma and stereotypes passed through individual experiences. The final component, how culture and social interacts continue the racial divided system, is seen in the medical differences in care easily seen by observing the perpetual loop of residential segregation that leads to poor environment and poor opportunities for medical aid.
Conclusion
Health disparities between black and white americans is based on historic inequality and the continued institutionalized segregation. Without direct and systematic action, this endless cycle of mistreatment will continue. The use of tokenism and the media tries to reduce the truth about racial disparities but data has consistently shown that it is at the forefront of economics, education, medicine, and social life.
Theoretical Framework The concept of race-based critical theory stems from the broader idea of critical theory. Critical theory is unlike other sociological theories because it incorporates direct evaluation of society based upon a holistic awareness of the fault of the society in question. The basis of this theory is a concept of moral goodness and fixing …show more content…
inequality in the structure of societies. “A race-based critical theory can be defined as critical theory that puts race -- not just racial injustices and inequalities but racial ideologies and identities as well as racial ways of thinking about and rationalizing existing social arrangements more generally -- at the forefront of its analytics lens onto the social world” (Hartmann & Bell, p. 233).
Race-based critical theory does not ignore the fact, but rather incorporates, that race is a defining feature of current social structure.
Sociologists have divided this theory into four defining factors. First, how race is a defining feature of modern society. Second, how current structure of race is unjust and unequal. Third, how differences in race and inequalities are constructed from social relationships. Lastly, how culture and social interacts continue the racial divided system. Previous theories that have attempted to analyze current social arrangements have been detrimentally color-bind. Color blind theories ignore the facts of inequality while race-based critical theory brilliantly uses it to understand systematic relations of
society. The concept of critical theory can be applied to concepts other than race including class based critical theory. By placing social class at the center, sociologists can attempt to explain its application into society. In the United States, the poor are significantly segregated from the rich and this imbalance affects their everyday lives and function in society. Class based critical theory would first, put class as a defining feature of modern society. Second, explain how current social class arrangements are unjust and unequal. Third, state how class differences are constructed and enhanced through social relationships. Fourth, current class differences are maintained through culture and society.
Methodology
Data has consistently shown disparities while comparing the health of black and white Americans. The National Cancer Institute (NIH, 2008) states that when combining all cancer, black Americans have a 25% higher death rate when compared to whites. Black mothers have significantly less prenatal care and deliver more premature babies than white mothers. “The average lifespan of (black) male is 72.3 years...4 years shorter than the overall male average in the average in the U.S… (black) women live an average of 78 years, which is nearly 3 years shorter than the American average for women” (Du Pre, p. 133). The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has studied consistently since the 1980s that hypertension is significantly more prevalent in black women and men when compared to white and hispanic men. The CDC has also noted that both black women and men have higher death rates with hypertension, heart attack, and stroke when compared to white men. Across the medical field, black americans have statistically shown to be at a disadvantage compared to white americans. Distrust of those in power of institutions has been a long and rightful bias of racial minorities, but there have been specific, and much too recent, reasons why there is distrust in the medical field from minority citizens within the United States. The most notable, single occurrence that gave black Americans fear and indifference towards the medical field was the Tuskegee Syphilis Study. This infamous study was conducted in Alabama, by the United States Public Health Service, beginning in 1932, to test the long term effects of untreated syphilis in black males. Common misunderstanding of this case had led many to believe the researchers infected the the almost 400 black men. This is incorrect, as the men had contracted syphilis before entering the study. The facts are that the experimenters did not make them aware that they had syphilis, they only knew the study was of “bad blood” and experimenters did not give the known treatment of penicillin . The researchers allowed the men to infect their spouses and children, barred the men from seeking medical help, and even went as far as to blacklist the men from being drafted into the military in fear they would lose their study participants. Since the outlawing of slavery and segregation, or society as a whole has continued to keep the old systems subtle inequality by institutionalizing racial discrimination. One aspect that upholds the perpetual loop of racial inequality is the geographic segregation of blacks into poor, urban areas. As white americans continue to move to suburbs, black americans are left in the crumbling cities and funding to every aspect of their life, schools, infrastructure, and hospitals, is sucked away. As shown generation after generation, growing up impoverished is a likely sign that one will be impoverished as an adult. These black segregated locations give lead to black children growing up with less skill educations, less prestigious colleges if they can afford higher education, worse paying jobs, and overall less opportunities than white counterparts. This cycle translates back to medical inequalities in two ways. First is, continuing the cycle from above, when opportunities are limited, especially job opportunities, people cannot afford to miss any day of work for medical reasons, whether it be a checkup or severe pain. Also, less prestigious jobs carry worse insurance, so if anything is wrong, they may not be able to afford it. The second aspect is that those residing in cities are more exposed to pollutants, chemicals, and the ever growing fast food corporations and a filthy, but cheaper option to keep themselves and their families fed.
A multitude of intersecting effect come together to direct differences in medical treatment favoring white patients over black patients. Doctors located within hospitals that commonly serve poorer, majority black populations receive less funding, less qualified employees, and can not provide care that measures to multibillion dollar, high tech hospitals.
“Hospitals in Black neighborhoods have fewer technological resources (eg, imaging technology) and fewer specialists (eg, cardiac surgeons, oncologists), which results in missed opportunities for early intervention in cancers and a tendency to diagnose and treat symptoms rather than underlying diseases” (Landrine and Corral, p.180).
Even without accounting for specific hospital setting, the demographics of doctors do not match the population. In the United States, the Census Bureau has released data that, even though black and hispanic americans combined make up 30% of the national population, they only constitute for 12% of physicians, 18.5% of registered nurses, and 14% of pharmacists. With these facts, it can be seen that it is likely that a patient who is black will not receive a black care provider. It is a known fact that people will communicate better and feel more comfortable with a person who they feel similar to. Even with unmatched patient to doctor races, Universities are not teaching prospective doctors how to properly treat all patients when it is obviously an issue. It has also been studied, by Balsa and McGuire (Escarce, 2005), that even when physicians are not personally racist or discriminatory, many will practice racial categorizing behaviors in their medical practice. Black patients are much more likely to be recommended lower cost medical options and often not made aware of higher priced ones. This can be attributed to the racial stereotype that blacks can not afford costly things. While this may be true for some people; and as discussed before, it has stemmed from historic inequality and segregation, as an entire race, with no other factors, patients with black skin are not being offered the best medical treatment.
Discussion
As discussed within this paper, many intersecting aspects of society have led to the current racial disparities within the United States medical field. This data can be analysed by the components of race-based critical theory. The first component, how race is a defining feature of modern society, is proven by the mere facts of history, slavery, and the black/white segregation based on race. The second component, how current structure of race is unjust and unequal is noted within the medical field data with black americans being affected more and dying more compared with whites. The third component, how differences in race and inequalities are constructed from social relationships, can be seen as a factor of health disparity by observing the institutionalized loop of stigma and stereotypes passed through individual experiences. The final component, how culture and social interacts continue the racial divided system, is seen in the medical differences in care easily seen by observing the perpetual loop of residential segregation that leads to poor environment and poor opportunities for medical aid.
Conclusion
Health disparities between black and white americans is based on historic inequality and the continued institutionalized segregation. Without direct and systematic action, this endless cycle of mistreatment will continue. The use of tokenism and the media tries to reduce the truth about racial disparities but data has consistently shown that it is at the forefront of economics, education, medicine, and social life.