Global, North Carolina

The damage of social and health inequalities

December 9, 2013

Sunday, I was struck by the complementarity of messages in articles that appeared in the New York Times about South Africa and in a local Herald Sun opinion piece authored by Jonathan Kotch, MD, MPH, one of our faculty members. In South Africa and in North Carolina, there are huge gaps in social and health equality between blacks and whites. Social and health inequalities are global problems that must be corrected.

Professor Kotch is right. North Carolina has a grand tradition of caring and commitment translated into social action. We should not go backward. Social and health inequalities undermine the fabric of our society. They threaten everyone, not only those who suffer immediately.

These are issues that deserve the attention of each of us, not just people in public health. Barbara


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The views expressed in this blog are Barbara Rimer’s alone and do not represent the views and policies of The University of North Carolina or the Gillings School.