HTLTH 509 Discussion Thread: Social Determinants of Health Thread 2
The most prominent reasons for inequalities/disparities can be observed within the
attribution of social factors. They both can have their effects through the inception of
communicable and non-communicable diseases and social determinants of health, with one of
those being notably in poverty. An example of an atrocity and true disparity can be seen with the
aboriginal Torres Saint Islander people being a socially excluded minority within their country.
Dirty water, lack of calories, and poor continental care cannot account for the 20-year deficit in
the life expectancy of Australian and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Their infant mortality rate, at
12.7 per 1,000 live births, is low worldwide. The high adult mortality rate is from cardiovascular
diseases, cancers, endocrine nutritional and metabolic diseases (including diabetes), external
causes (violence), respiratory disorders, and digestive diseases . One of the best ways to combat
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poverty in decimated impoverished communities is to empower them through education.
Communities in poverty most likely adopted lower living standards, minimal access to health
care, little education, and inadequate agriculture. The combination of environmental factors and
many extrinsic factors is the most probable reason why people living in poverty tend to have a
lower health status. Public health professionals need to focus not only on environmental
conditions but also poverty and alienation poverty, which are interconnected. There are three
primary ways that the greater society can work to improve the health of impoverished
communities, and those three ways are the following: through outreach and adopting new laws
that focus on equity, diversion, and inclusion.
While many would protest that the government is not to blame for childhood poverty,
teenage pregnancy rates, and the stereotypical deadbeat father narrative, all these points can be
centered. If one travels back into the foundation for why society is at descension can be found.
While many forms of government aid were created to help low-income families, the most recent
aid can be traced to the Clinton Administration, which affected over two generations of minority
communities. Upon examination, this administration and its campaign were second-handedly
responsible for how childhood poverty, teenage pregnancy, and the deadbeat father narrative
were dealt with. The infamous TNAF (Temporary Need Assistance for Families) Act, unlike
many other programs before its time, had stricter work requirements that required single mothers
to find work within two years of receiving benefits. A five-year lifetime limit was imposed for
receiving benefits. To reinforce traditional family values, a core principle of the Republican
party, teenage mothers were prohibited benefits, and fathers who were delinquent in child
support payments were threatened with imprisonment. States were banned from using federally
funded TNAF for certain groups of immigrants, and restrictions were placed on their eligibility
for Medicaid, food stamps, and supplemental social security income (SSI) . This transitions into
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the next point of Bill Clinton’s 1994 crime bill, which single-handedly led to mass incarceration
and was the most significant in the history of the United States .
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Furthermore, the crime bill included that any parent, specifically the father delinquent on
child support via the Deadbeat Act, could face the consequences. Figuratively speaking, during
the signing of that act, more than 3 million out-of-state deadbeat parents could face felony
charges and prison time under child support legislation signed by President Clinton . The effects
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of this legislation would be catastrophic even today.
One must understand past mistakes for the same mistakes not to be repeated. The past
laws, policies, and government involvement with low-income families were demonized, and
research indicates it hurts the family unit. The image of the welfare queen, deadbeat and super
predator minority male directly resulted from the laws passed during that time. Every human is
responsible for their actions, including those in unbearable conditions in which they have no
choice. Realizing one's true power and voice to make a change is critical. The leaders of the past
were wrong about the image of the deadbeat father, especially the black father. Research
indicates that in 2013 the CDC exposed the truth that 2.5 million black fathers live in a
household with their children compared with 1.7 million who do not. This fact is the statistical
repudiation of the often overused talking point that most black children live in fatherless homes
5. The statistics and historical research indicate that health inequalities are rooted in ensuring the
laws, allocation of resources and propaganda spewed by radical politicians are corrected by
being dismantled from the root.
The paradox of China having relatively good health despite notoriously low incomes in
comparison with Russia having more typically lower incomes and relatively poor health is quite
the oxymoron. Social norms and a calculative precipitation of culture play an integral role in
why. While Chinese communities may have lower incomes, their diets are typically holistically
varied and healthier. Asian ethnicities tend to have rich rice diets and leafier greens—Chinese
households and vegetables with low meat consumption in small portions. Furthermore, many
Russian countries and communities have a history of alcohol usage and high amounts of smoking
daily.
In Galatians 6:2, God tells humanity, "Carry each other's burdens and this way you will
fulfill the law of Christ" As a public health professional, one solution is a call to action in the
community for collaboration with everyone. There is power in numbers and addressing these
issues with elected officials is a given right as an American citizen. Churches are an integral part,
and the scripture says a believer must do the same sacrificial work Christ did when he walked
this earth. Advocacy and taking no for an answer are the start of this change.
Reference’s
1. Carten A. The racist roots of welfare reform. The New Republic.
https://newrepublic.com/article/136200/racist-roots-welfare-reform. Published August 22,
2020. Accessed January 26, 2023.
2. Fowler R. Black fathers work together to spotlight their role in society. Forbes.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardfowler/2022/09/07/black-fathers-work-together-to-
shine-a-spotlight-on-their-role-in-society/. Published September 9, 2022. Accessed
January 26, 2023.
3. How the 1994 Crime Bill Fed the mass incarceration crisis: News & commentary.
American Civil Liberties Union. https://www.aclu.org/news/smart-justice/how-1994-
crime-bill-fed-mass-incarceration-crisis. Published September 6, 2022. Accessed January
26, 2023.
4. Michael M. Social Determinants of health inequalities - the lancet. The Lancet London.
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(05)71146-6/fulltext.
Published March 19, 2005. Accessed January 26, 2023.
5. Rahman KN. Let us all thank Bill Clinton for The Deadbeat Parents Punishments Act.
The Child Support Hustle®. https://www.thechildsupporthustle.com/2020/07/26/the-
deadbeat-parents-punishments-act/. Published July 26, 2020. Accessed January 26, 2023.
