A sharply divided Hennepin County Board approved a resolution Tuesday to declare racism a public health crisis and outline a strategy to address it.
The board approved the racism statement 6-1. Later and after a lengthy debate, the board voted 4-3 to implement 10 directives to reduce racial disparities in housing, health care, education, incarceration and job opportunities.
But commissioners who opposed the resolution said the directives were confusing and didn't address the funding needed to achieve the stated goals. The board agreed last week in committee to advance the resolution for Tuesday's final vote.
It was sponsored by Angela Conley and Irene Fernando, the board's first two commissioners of color, who contended that Hennepin County had failed to address the impact that systematic racism has on residents and that a holistic and detailed approach is necessary to reduce disparities.
"Year after year after year, we find ourselves as a state — and ultimately as the largest county in this state — ranking among the worst places to live for black and Indigenous people," said Conley. "More and more across the country, professionals in the field of public health are saying that we need to name structural racism as the root cause of our work to eliminate disparities."
The directives say county officials should promote policies to improve the health of communities of color, join in community efforts to confront racism and address racism and health in budget materials.
County officials are supposed to report back to the board in three months on a timetable for action.
Commissioners Jeff Johnson, Mike Opat and Jan Callison voted against the directives in the resolution. Callison said the county doesn't have authority on public health issues for several cities.
