NEACSM

                                                                                                                                                                                                  June 5, 2020

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To Our NEACSM Community,

 

We are heartbroken over and disturbed by the murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and other victims of racist violence. We support our communities expressing outrage through peaceful protest, and we condemn systemic racial injustice in all its forms. As an organization focused on health, we recognize the ways structural racism creates disparities in access to healthcare and causes disproportionately negative health outcomes for Black individuals. To effect systemic change, we must recognize how each of us contributes to a system that discriminates against people of color and use any privilege we have to humbly take action.

 

We are committed to addressing racial inequity in our profession and in our communities. The NEACSM prioritizes diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we will continue to listen to our constituents, examine our practices, and take deliberate steps to dismantle systemic discrimination in our chapter and beyond. We call for all exercise physiologists, physicians, strength coaches, and health fitness professionals to commit to anti-racist practices: to provide equitable care for all individuals and to stand united against racism, hatred, and discrimination. We encourage our membership to mobilize against racial injustice, and we have included links below to several resources and ways of taking action that are particularly suited to those in the exercise science and sports medicine community.

 

 

On behalf of the New England Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine,

 

Paul Gallo, EdD, FACSM

President

 

Dain LaRoche, PhD, FACSM

Immediate Past President

 

Elizabeth O'Neill, DPE

President-Elect

 

Katie Burton, PhD

Chair, Diversity Committee

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Dino Costanzo, MS, FACSM

Executive Director

 

 

 

Selected Resources

 

ACSM's Leadership & Diversity Training Program: https://www.acsm.org/acsm-membership/support-acsm-foundation/grants-and-financial-support/travel-awards/Leadership-Diversity-Training-Program

 

ACSM Special Interest Group, “Minority Health and Research”: https://www.acsm.org/acsm-membership/about-us/special-interest-groups

 

Health Begins, “Racial Justice and Health Equity Resources”: https://www.healthbegins.org/resources-for-equity.html

 

Circulation (2020), “At the Heart of the Matter: Unmasking and Addressing COVID-19's Toll on Diverse Populations” by Norrissa Haynes, Lisa A. Cooper, and Michelle A. Albert and on behalf of the Association of Black Cardiologists: https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.120.048126

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Medpage Today (2020), “We Can't Breathe” by LaShyra Nolen: https://www.medpagetoday.com/publichealthpolicy/medicaleducation/86815

 

APA (2019), “How does implicit bias by physicians affect patient's health care?” by Tori DeAngelis: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/03/ce-corner