Stories from the Field – Center for Black Health and Equity

The Why:

The Center for Black Health & Equity (The Center) sought to understand the disproportionate impacts of transportation policies on     communities across the United States and specifically how those policies have affected cities with predominantly Black populations. With the Federal Highway Act (FHA) of 1956 and the development of the Interstate Highway System, communities across the nation experienced significant negative health, social, and economic consequences. These consequences were even more profound for Black communities –  both historically and today –  that experienced more displacement, worse health outcomes, and other negative social and economic impacts.

The What and The How:

Using Sentinel Surveillance, a legal epidemiological approach, The Center sought to explore the impact of laws and policies enacted after the FHA on five jurisdictions: Atlanta, Houston, Cleveland, Oakland, and St. Paul. Yet, while legal epidemiology employs a transdisciplinary approach that leverages the diverse skills of its participants, The Center’s project team recognized that it often lacks a crucial element: community engagement. To address this gap and better understand the impact of transportation policy on populations that bear a greater burden, The Center’s project focused on connecting with Black community members in three of the five jurisdictions they studied. Throughout, they upheld community power-building principles by: 

• Acting Collectively: Beyond analyzing transportation laws and policies, The Center conducted community listening sessions to understand the real-world impacts of these laws and policies. These listening sessions, comprised of business owners, farmers, teachers, and legacy residents and their descendants, provided firsthand accounts of how transportation policies and infrastructure have affected these communities, underscoring the importance of involving those directly impacted by the laws and policies at every step of transportation policymaking.
• Shifting Narratives: By uplifting stories of Black communities disproportionately impacted by transportation policy, legacy residents and their descendants, and health advocates can challenge the narrative that policymaking is neutral. In fact, historical policy approaches continue to have that effect today, as evidenced by the stories told in listening sessions.
• Engage Communities Authentically: Throughout the listening sessions, legacy residents recalled not understanding the impact that transportation infrastructure development would have on their community and that “they didn’t have a say about anything going on.” They just thought the construction was about “white folks doing their thing.” One key takeaway from these observations was the importance of decision makers to engage authentically with communities and learn from their lived and living experiences to inform more fair, community-centered transportation policy.
• Cultivate Ongoing Relationships: To make sure the listening sessions were not a “one and done” approach, following the listening sessions, The Center encouraged residents and neighborhood leaders to continue working with public officials, and identify individuals and local, community-based organizations who could keep the conversations and current transportation policy planning with residents and local stakeholders moving forward.

Read more here: Going Beyond Legal Epidemiology: Community Engagement (https://centerforblackhealth.org/issues/equity-centered-policies/roads-built-by-injustice/