Anti-racism Resources

In October 2020, the AAMC released the AAMC Framework for Addressing and Eliminating Racism at the AAMC, in Academic Medicine, and Beyond. Below are helpful definitions, video resources, and examples of anti-racism in practice within the United States’ medical schools and teaching hospitals. Helpful AAMC publications, reading lists, and other resources are also included below.

Racism

“A system of structuring opportunity and assigning value based on the social interpretation of how one looks (which is what we call ‘race’), that unfairly disadvantages some individuals and communities, unfairly advantages other individuals and communities, and saps the strength of the whole society through the waste of human resources.”

— APHA Past President Camara Phyllis Jones, MD, MPH, PhD

Anti-racism

“The active process of naming and confronting racism by changing systems, organizational structures, policies and practices and attitudes, so that power is redistributed and shared equitably.”

— AMA-AAMC Advancing Health Equity: A Guide to Language, Narrative and Concepts

Racial justice

“The systematic fair treatment of people of all races, resulting in equitable opportunities and outcomes for all. Racial justice—or racial equity—goes beyond ‘anti-racism.’ It is not just the absence of discrimination and inequities but also the presence of deliberate systems and supports to achieve and sustain racial equity through proactive and preventive measures.”

— AMA-AAMC Advancing Health Equity: A Guide to Language, Narrative and Concepts

Doing the Work

The AAMC framework identifies several pillars to guide our actions as individuals, organizations, and communities. Below are several video resources about the impact of race and racism across multiple levels and opportunities to increase dialogue and strategic efforts that help organizations to become anti-racist, diverse, equitable, and inclusive.

African american girl standing indoors and looking at the camera. She's showing a message that says Stop Racism on her hands.

As an Individual

As an Organization

As a Community

Leading by Example

AAMC-member institutions are developing and leading varied curricula initiatives, equity-centered action plans, professional learning opportunities, and research centers to drive systemic change focused on addressing and eliminating racism in academic medicine. Below are several member examples of current anti-racism efforts.

Research

Boston University

Boston University Center for Antiracist Research

University of Southern California (USC)

USC Race and Equity Center

Webinar and Training

Emory University School of Medicine

Racism and Social Justice Webinar Series

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Anti-Racist Transformation in Medical Education

Action Plans

University of California, San Francisco

The REPAIR Project

University of Rochester Medical Center

Equity and Anti-racism Action Plan

Clinical Care

The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center

21-Day Anti-Racism Challenge

Stanford University School of Medicine

Bias and Socio-cultural Awareness in Clinical Settings

Diving Deeper: Other AAMC Resources

The AAMC continues to develop and disseminate resources to transform rhetoric into action as we do our own work to become an anti-racist, diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization and serve our member institutions along their journeys.