At SAGE, we are passionate about supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion in wider society through our publishing activities.

We are doing this by publishing and amplifying content from diverse, global perspectives, including scholars of color, LGBTQIA+ people, and people with disabilities. We are also advocating for social justice by championing emerging disciplines and publishing content that provides evidence of social, economic, health, environmental, and/or other forms of inequity.

The latest special issue from Health Education & Behavior, one of the Society for Public Health Education journals published by SAGE, is entitled ‘Racism Within: Special Journal Issue on Scholars of Color’.

The issue features articles on the experiences of researchers of color and research on the inequalities in healthcare in the wider community. In the wake of the murder of George Floyd and in the midst of COVID-19, nine experts from around the US—all scholars of color—were assembled to serve as the guest editorial board of the special issue.

HE&B received 165 proposals, of which 14 articles were selected—all of which share a vision and goal of antiracism in both public health and scholarship. Through a range of methodologies and topics, the authors examine uninformed uses of social categories; identity and stereotypes; the intersections of gender, sexual orientation, and social class; as well as white supremacy’s influence in producing hierarchies that negatively impact public health as a whole.

“I believe, also, that the reader will find here a collective narrative and a sense of community—both of which are essential for the transformation we seek to build,” wrote HE&B Editor-in-Chief Dr. Jesus Ramirez-Valles in his opening editorial for the special issue.

“This narrative is not about ‘saying’ or ‘telling’ but about recreating our sense of selves and asserting our own being.”

Throughout history, racism has shaped the overarching power structure of society, from colonialism to the present-day distribution of health services. Knowledge is produced and reproduced to maintain and bolster the status quo, which systematically excludes people of color from research and scholarship. By blocking underrepresented perspectives, a comprehensive account cannot be established, thereby hindering health outcomes, quality of life, and most every aspect of societal life.

Through this special issue, Health Education & Behavior aims to encourage others to speak up and, ultimately, bring about greater health equity. The issue is featured on our Structural racism and police violence microsite.

Follow Health Education & Behavior on Twitter @HEandB and @SOPHEtweets.