Podcasts

In Solidarity is back for a brand-new series exploring the connections between our civic health, our individual health and the health of our communities. We’re bringing you eight interviews with equity experts and authors Daniel Dawes, Dr. Peniel Joseph, Dr. Erika Blacksher, Dr. Julia Kaufman, Dr. Solange Gould, Aliya Bhatia, Jeanne Ayers and Dawn Hunter.

How do the opportunities to vote, have a say in our futures and connect in our communities impact our health? Hosts Ericka Burroughs-Girardi and Beth Silver explore civic health and its connection to everyone’s health. We kick off the series with Julia Kaufman, a senior policy researcher at the RAND Corporation, who explains why civic infrastructure is important and how it’s tied to health equity. We’re also joined by Dawn Hunter of the Network for Public Health Law and the lead author of the Health & Democracy Index, who explains the link between restrictive voting policies and poorer health outcomes.

There’s a growing body of evidence that shows that people living in areas with structural barriers, such as laws that restrict voter eligibility, registration and opportunities to participate, have lower voter turnout and shorter life expectancy. In our second episode, hosts Beth Silver and Ericka Burroughs-Girardi are joined by Daniel Dawes, executive director of the Institute of Global Health Equity at Meharry Medical College, and the founder of the political determinants of health framework. Dawes discusses how the political determinants have shaped communities’ ability to define and address public problems. Dr. Peniel Joseph, an author, professor and founding director of the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy at The University of Texas at Austin, also joins the conversation to provide examples of how tools of democracy — historical and present — have shaped where we are today.

Public health and health care systems can play an important role in improving civic health. In the third episode of this series, hosts Beth Silver and Ericka Burroughs-Girardi dive into examples of public health and health care organizations’ efforts to increase civic participation. They are joined by Jeanne Ayers, the executive director of Healthy Democracy Healthy People, who discusses both challenges and victories to increase voter registration during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Aliya Bhatia, executive director of Vot-ER, shares how bringing voter registration into emergency rooms, hospitals and community health centers has moved health beyond the exam room.

When people closest to problems have the power to influence solutions, those solutions often benefit everyone. In our final episode of this series on civic health, hosts Beth Silver and Ericka Burroughs-Girardi explore strategies to ensure everyone has a voice and the opportunity for collective change. They are joined by Dr. Solange Gould, the co-director of Human Impact Partners, who discusses the role narratives play in building power and improving civic health. Dr. Erika Blacksher, the John B. Francis Chair in Bioethics at the Center for Practical Bioethics and a professor at the University of Kansas Medical Center, concludes our series by defining democratic deliberation and how it’s related to health equity.