Why Black People Die Sooner

This groundbreaking book exposes how racism systematically undermines medical diagnosis and treatment while challenging political policies that perpetuate health inequities rooted in socioeconomic disparities. Its rigorous documentation and compelling analysis make it an essential resource for evolutionary medicine courses and will resonate with anyone seeking to understand the intersection of race, politics, and public health. -- Stephen Stearns, Edward P. Bass Professor Emeritus of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University Why Black People Die Sooner examines how race and racism remain entrenched in medical thought, policy, technology, and practice, despite a half-century of biological research that refutes a genetic basis of race. Graves explains how evolutionary biology, history, and health science converge to challenge pervasive medical misconceptions and proposes solutions grounded in evolutionary biology and precision medicine. -- Paula Ivey Henry, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Why Black People Die Sooner is another tour de force from Joseph L. Graves Jr. He shines a bright light on the persistently devastating inequalities in health among races and offers solutions for society and health care. A brilliant synthesis and a must-read. -- Alan H. Goodman, former president of the American Anthropological Association With characteristic brilliance and force, Graves demolishes the errors of conventional medical thinking premised on widely misconceived beliefs about supposed human races. In their place, he offers a deep reformulation of medicine that draws from the cutting edges of genomics, transcriptomics, and evolutionary biology. Remarkably powerful, profoundly considered, this book unflinchingly presents a medical tragedy of maltreatment yet counterbalances it with an inspiring vision of an alternative future for medicine that would indeed work for everyone. -- Michael R. Rose, University of California, Irvine A unique must-read whodunnit. The author convincingly, skillfully and delightfully weaves together evidence from history, evolution, human genetics, science, medicine and personal experiences. The answer? Not genetics, but injustices beginning on slave ships and continuing today as ever-morphing forms of health disparities, societal inequities and racism. Read and find out! -- Joel S. Brown, Moffitt Cancer Center