Sheās a Boomer, heās a Millennial. She was born and raised in rural Robeson County, NC; he grew up in Southwest Houston, TX. Sheās a Lumbee Indian, the largest tribe east of the Mississippi River, and he identifies deeply with his Ghanaian, West African culture. Both have close ties to their families and communities, share a broad definition of health, and are passionate about the power of citizen engagement as a requisite for transformative policy change. Meet Donna Chavis and Niiobli Armah, Chair and Vice Chair of the Active Living By Design (ALBD) Advisory Board. They recently shared their perspectives on the power of policy for health.
Niiobli: We need to raise the bar on what weāre aspiring to achieve. We canāt settle for status quo. Every planning process needs to start with an intentional conversation about whatās going to be done to close disparity gaps. We also need a more relentless advocacy base. If you look at effective movements, no one asked nicely for inclusion. Folks didnāt sleep. They made it a top priority. When zip code determines life expectancy, we need to find a way to rally those folks to demand better policy.
Donna: I canāt say that I think the country is doing very well. There was a recent Pew study showing that 43 percent of the population uses all of its income each month, and often goes into debt or uses savings to make it through. That has an impact on health. If there were a policy Iād really fight for, it would be to require employers to pay a living wage. Not a minimum wage, a living wage.
Niiobli: I completely agree. Income inequality is the root of health inequality. Thatās something health advocates need to doābuild an even more inclusive movement.
Niiobli: To me, a culture of health should be flexible enough to where communities set their own definition that embody their unique experiences while raising the standard for health. I think the dialogue is shifting. Weāre able to convene and talk about things weāve overlooked in the past. As the conversation changes, the voices in the room should change. The door is now open, but we need to get new people at the table. Itās our responsibility as practitioners to invite them in.
Donna: The word āaccessā comes to mind for me. People will usually make healthy choices if they have them. When people have access they make better choices. The hope I have in my community is something very concrete: seeing all of these divergent groups working to improve overall health is encouraging.
Donna: We often talk about work at these levels as if theyāre distinct. For me, the lesson is that thatās not the case. So often the locals feel like they donāt have access or are not important to state and national change. Or state and national people feel like they can get things done on their own. For me, longer term successes come when all three see themselves as interrelated. When the locals see themselves as the dominant force that they are, their steps are stronger and more forward-thinking, and they can often garner more support. When nationals see themselves as servant leaders, they can make better use of the work being done on the ground.
Niiobli: I want to build on that. Itās really important to have advocates working across the spectrum to do that very thing. Collaboration canāt be optional. In national conversations, local advocates need to be sitting next to us when possible. That makes for a more sophisticated movement thatās ready for the problems weāre facing.
Niiobli: I think about the importance of building locally. Weāve lost many battles on Capitol Hill that weāve won locally, and vice versa. If folks are frustrated, then they should hold a meeting, pick new candidates and work like hell to ensure they get into office. If the current body isnāt working the way it should, then it needs to be replaced. Thatās the root of democracy, uplifting local voices.
Donna: I think itās easy for any of us at any point to feel cynical. One of the best forms of encouragement is looking for wins. No matter how deep you are in the muck and mire of a campaign that may look that itās going nowhere, find something to celebrate. It might be very small, but could help you move forward. Start off where you know youāll have a victory. Itās critical in times like this.