Researchers at Washington University and Saint Louis University find that residential racial segregation in the city of St. Louis negatively impacts the health of African Americans in the city. And they report that St. Louis is one of the most racially segregated cities in the United States.
Co-author Melody S. Goodman, an assistant professor of surgery at Washington University, states “Segregation itself is not the problem. Segregation is just people of different races living in different communities. The issue with segregation is that it often causes inequality.”
The authors point out that racial segregation tends to produce high rates of poverty. High poverty neighborhoods often have lower levels of public service, more liquor stores, more fast-food outlets, and higher crime rates, all factors that can have an adverse impact on a community’s health.
The report, For the Sake of All, can be downloaded by clicking here.
