In June 2020, by unanimous vote of the Town Council, West Hartford became one of the first municipalities in the state to declare racism a public health crisis.

By Adam Chiarra, CTNewsJunkie.com 

Evidence shows that minorities in Connecticut are experiencing a magnitude of health disparities.

State Sen. Saud Anwar, a Democrat from South Windsor who is also a medical doctor, believes the state needs to acknowledge that this is a public health crisis that is the result of systemic racism. He has proposed Senate Bill 55, which would designate racism as a public health crisis in the state and establish a commission to study the impact of institutional racism on public health.

However, the deadline for the committee to raise the bill has passed. It can still be raised in another form by the committee no later than Feb. 24.

Anwar says that we need to recognize the role of racism in this problem, so we can take the first step of healing. He believes once that happens, then the state will be on the right path toward finding solutions.

West Hartford was one of the first towns in the state to declare racism a public health crisis, voting unanimously to approve a resolution in June 2020.

Adam Chiara is an assistant professor of communication at the University of Hartford and a multimedia storyteller.

Republished with permission from CTNewsJunkie.com, all rights reserved.

Like what you see here? Click here to subscribe to We-Ha’s newsletter so you’ll always be in the know about what’s happening in West Hartford! Click the blue button below to become a supporter of We-Ha.com and our efforts to continue producing quality journalism.