New Training Series Equips Community Leaders to Address Structural Racism as Root Cause of Health Disparities

HCN Global has launched the ninth edition of its Culture of Health / la Cultura de Salud programming series, this year featuring a new webinar series focused on helping community leaders identify and address structural racism as a root cause of health inequity. Supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the initiative builds on more than 40 years of work alongside communities of color at a time when these communities continue to face compounding barriers to health access, education, and economic opportunity.

Structural racism—defined as the policies, systems, and practices built into society that create and maintain racial inequities—continues to shape who has access to quality healthcare, nutritious food, safe housing, and educational opportunities. These barriers disproportionately impact Latino, Black, Indigenous, and immigrant communities, resulting in measurably worse health outcomes and reduced life expectancy. Health and economic data reveal persistent racial disparities, with Black women and infants experiencing significantly higher mortality rates than their white counterparts, while Latino communities have faced higher uninsured rates and disproportionate impacts from COVID-19.

‘Community partners are on the front lines witnessing how structural barriers show up in daily life—families choosing between rent and groceries, children attending underfunded schools, immigrants afraid to access healthcare,’ said Alison Rodden, HCN Global CEO. ‘This series gives them the language, frameworks, and practical examples of how to name these structures, connect them to health outcomes, and mobilize for change.’ The economic dimension of these disparities is equally stark, with white households holding substantially more wealth than Black and Latino households, and homeownership rates—a key source of generational wealth—markedly higher among white families.

The Building Equity: Tools for Community Leadership Webinar Series consists of two parts. The first webinar, ‘Seeing the Structures,’ examines how inequities in housing and food systems, education and health literacy, and immigration policy impact community health and access to care. The second, ‘From Knowledge to Action,’ is an interactive workshop where participants map local barriers, develop messaging that connects community issues to structural causes, and create action plans for organizing, advocacy, and systems-level change. HCN Global’s research identified gaps in how community organizations understand and communicate about structural racism as a driver of health inequities, with many leaders lacking shared language and frameworks to connect lived experiences to systemic causes.

The initiative addresses these gaps by providing evidence-based, culturally relevant tools and elevating community expertise through bilingual resources and peer learning opportunities. Leveraging national networks including La Red Hispana, Melanin Thriving, and LatinEQUIS, the program expands access to trusted community partners. Dedicated webpages house resources designed to help community leaders continue this work beyond the live sessions. For Spanish resources, visit laredhispana.org/liderazgo-para-una-cultura-de-salud/. For English-preferring Latino and Black audiences, visit melaninthriving.com/leadership-for-culture-of-health and wearelatinequis.com/leadership-for-a-culture-of-health. Community leaders, health workers, advocates, and partner organizations can register for the free webinars at https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/A4d9Hx10RdGvjIiHg4i5NQ#/registration.

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