Category: Community Engagement

January 31, 2020 by Sara Harper, LHC Student Intern

Intro

Last Saturday, January 25th, I participated in an anti-war protest, organized by the Birmingham chapter of the Party for Socialism & Liberation, in response to political strife over the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani. As the rally ended a passerby approached to question the group’s intentions. He commented, “I just think there are better ways to get your message across, because this,” he motioned to the group surrounding him, “is going to burn out.” His comments weren’t unfounded; social movements can fizzle without a strong group organizing and keeping advocates accountable. Regardless of the outcomes, protests have been essential to the formation and vast changes America has undergone throughout history.

It Isn’t Just Yelling

Sure, people who protest seem pretty angry. We are! Protesting is the most outward and public way that advocates can voice opinions on the platforms they feel passionately about. However, public protests are only one tool in the advocacy kit. Protesting is by no means the end-all-be-all to any movement; it just happens to be the loudest and most visible form of advocacy. It’s easy to overlook the organizing power behind rallying a large group of people who are willing to stand in solidarity against whatever they believe to be unjust. Protests are the metaphorical tip of the iceberg for advocates who spend the majority of their time planning, recruiting, and participating in hands-on work related to their movement.

Legislative Significance

The right to protest is not explicitly mentioned within the first amendment but has historically been covered by the right to assembly and the right to free speech. The first amendment gives American citizens the legal protection needed to organize and publicly voice their grievances. The broad nature of the first amendment protects all forms of voicing dissent, including hate speech such as the antisemetic chants heard at the 2017 Unite the Right Rally in Charlottesville, VA. While these views are not generally accepted, they are still legal to express in a public forum per the first amendment.

The first amendment usually supplies protections to more vulnerable populations who choose to speak out against injustices. The right to protest has been exercised by a myriad of labor unions and other workers’ groups who withhold their labor in order to force management to implement changes in wages, safety laws, or equality in the workplace. Major advancements in civil rights, women’s rights, and LGBT+ rights – and the laws now in place – have only happened because of large scale movements, organized by the people within these communities.

Social Significance

Protesting is a socially significant route to spread information and increase general awareness on topics, not only in America but beyond our borders as well. Protests typically garner media attention which, in turn, exposes a higher percentage of the population to said topics. Media can bolster a movement to numbers the organizers never expected. However, large movements can be seen as aggressive to the local governments who funnel resources towards dismantling the movement organizers. An example of this includes the FBI’s involvement with targeting prominent members of the civil rights movement, including (but definitely not limited to) Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X. Government involvement in the dismantling of social movements has a history of escalating situations like the Kent State Massacre in 1970, when authorities opened fire on students protesting the Vietnam war. The shootings resulted in four deaths, nine injuries, and an increased sense of distrust between the government and distressed citizens. Relations between police and protestors were escalated in 2014 during the Ferguson Unrest following the police shooting of Michael Brown. As we move forward, protests have become the forefront of fighting for social justice and voicing dissent against oppression. However, those in power who would rather maintain the status quo retaliate in their own way. This is the ultimate caveat of protests: Rarely does progress happen without fighting against a forceful hand.

Movements and Momentum

The United States will likely never be protest-free; the only reason we exist as a country is because we protested an imperial power and won. The last four years have seen some of the largest protests in American history, with some estimates showing 4.6 million people participating in the 2017 Women’s March! As long as we continue to recognize (and subsequently utilize) the power of organizing and the power of protests, we will continue our American tradition for generations.

April 23, 2020, by Aarin Palomares, Deputy Director, Global Handwashing Partnership (FHI 360)

There is often a misconception that the private sector has no role in public health. However, the private sector can be a valuable partner in addressing poverty, injustice, and inequality around the world. Especially in times of crisis, companies work in tandem with governments, public authorities, and other stakeholders to address public health issues and support sustainable systems.

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has created a humanitarian and economic crisis and provides a call to action for stronger and more resilient public health systems. Government leadership is crucial – that we know. However, companies and civil society organizations also play a vital role in working together to respond to this immediate crisis. For two years, I have worked for a public-private partnership housed at FHI 360. Private sector engagement, especially through public-private partnerships like the Global Handwashing Partnership, can play a significant role in developing both immediate and long-term solutions.

The business case for public health

There is a clear link between tackling public health issues and business motivations. Despite global progress, 5.3 million children died before the age of 5 in 2018. Diarrheal disease and pneumonia remain two of the biggest causes of child mortality, yet research suggests the simple act of handwashing can reduce mortality by up to 50%. The social issue is clear: too many children die before their fifth birthday. The business opportunity is equally clear for businesses like P&G and Unilever; both soap manufacturers are partners of the Global Handwashing Partnership.

Companies are often quite transparent about their commercial interest in tackling a social issue. The reality is that they need to be. As you can imagine, it can be difficult to portray these two objectives – saving children and increasing profits – without some resistance from those with a strong social public sector background. However, this transparency builds external credibility and the reassurance that these companies are invested in this issue beyond publicity. Because hand hygiene is inherently engrained in their business ambitions, it naturally aligns with their social goals.

The social case for private sector

Public-private partnerships provide an effective model for handwashing programs because they combine the health objectives of the public sector with the marketing and supply chain expertise of the private sector. While the private sector stands to gain market expansion, the public sector gains from resources of the industry. In the current context, for example, companies are leveraging their current supply chains to provide access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) through their products, laboratories, expert advisors, and key workers who are providing essential public utility services.

Moreover, through their social impact missions, companies can play a major role in developing and sharing rapid solutions with households, frontline health workers, and policy makers. Most recently, Colgate-Palmolive, Essity, P&G, and Unilever worked with public sector partners to develop communications materials in response to the growing need for WASH-specific guidance around COVID-19. This idea that a large company helping marginalized and vulnerable communities may seem foreign, but using local brands that communities know and trust can be an accepted approach to educate them about a topic like hygiene.

Reflections from a public health perspective

Over the past two years, I’ve grown to appreciate the value that private sector partners have to offer. Based on my experience, here are some of my thoughts on the role of the private sector in public health:

• Broad coalitions are necessary to provide coordinated and unified programming. Coalitions that connect community networks, such as schools and community organizations, provide a mechanism to amplify messages and strategies to reach all individuals, even the most vulnerable. The Kenyan National Business Compact on Coronavirus is a good example of how these coalitions can support and amplify the work being done by the Ministries.
• The private sector has a voice. Harnessing the power of private sector brands can achieve immediate impact. Most recently, the private sector constituency of Sanitation and Water for All called on all governments to take the lead and prioritize WASH during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The role of the private sector is crucial, now more than ever. To help countries solve their own development challenges, USAID developed a policy framework called the Journey to Self-Reliance. This calls for innovative financing beyond the more traditional aid mechanisms. Private sector engagement is essential to this framework.

Engaging with the private sector may be key to the innovative and sustainable solutions we often seek. Whether we like it or not, the private sector has a growing role in public health and human development, and perhaps they are doing more good than we give them credit for.

September 26, 2019 by Suzanne Judd, LHC Director

A few weeks ago, I had that wonderful American privilege of being selected for jury duty to the 10th Judicial Circuit Court of Jefferson County, Alabama.  I say “wonderful” tongue-in-cheek since, like most of the people I was chatting with in the Jury Assembly Room, I had no desire to be there.  Parking was a nightmare.  They simply don’t have enough spots for the 400 jurors that were summoned to downtown Birmingham for the shot at being selected to sit on a jury.  This was my second time in three months coming on a Monday morning to wait to see if I would be selected for a jury.  Three months prior, I was dismissed because I had not lived in Jefferson County continuously for a year due to a six-month commitment in France. The disqualification didn’t make sense to me.  Luckily, I was back 90 days later to try again.  And this time, it was even better because Law & Order was on the television to keep me entertained while waiting.  No lie!

Before jury selection began, we sat through a 30-minute explanation of what a great honor it is to be selected as a juror.  The judge described how unique we are as Americans to be allowed to serve as jurors.  In most countries, citizens do not decide the fate of other citizens.  He described the jury selection process in Alabama, which is basically tied to being a registered voter.  Really?  Given all we know about voter suppression in Alabama, one can only assume the same factors affect the juror selection process.  This was a fact that was tough for this former Michigander to digest since Michigan uses driver’s license lists to generate juror pools.

As I sat looking around the room, I wondered why I can’t, as a voter, be randomly selected to sit down with lawmakers for a week to express ways to improve society rather than sitting here waiting to be selected for a jury.  My registering to vote enables me to sit on a jury to decide another human’s fate but does not provide me with the random chance to meet with the people for whom I voted?  Honestly, I would rather sit down with one of my elected officials for one week.  Nevertheless, I suppose jury service is important even if that means sitting and waiting.

Since I spent hours waiting, I began to meditate on the process for influencing elected officials to create and implement policies.  At times it can seem like citizens don’t have much input.  We can call, write, or email our representatives but that always seems so impersonal.  Layers of bureaucracy obscure the tangible results of those efforts.  If we want to occupy the same space as a candidate, there are town halls and debates but often those feel staged, lacking a real human connection between you and the candidate or elected official.

So where does that leave the average American who wants to be more involved?  Advocacy is one of the key tools to ensure the laws our elected officials pass and the ways in which they spend our collective money are more representative of what we want as a people.  Beyond simply contacting elected officials, an individual can advocate for their opinion by signing petitions, funding advocacy groups, and constantly pursuing information to stay educated about a variety of topics that face society.  Advocating can lead to policies that mold society into something that is more reflective of what the majority of people would like to see.

On the upside, jury duty begrudgingly provided me with needed time and space away from the daily grind to think my own role in influencing laws and policies. I also began to wonder what was on the mind of others. So, in the absence of a random lottery system that grants me access to my elected officials, here are some areas of health policy that seem quite timely:

• Gun control
• Drug legalization
• Transportation
• Health care
• Immigration

What are you doing?  Let us know; we would love to hear from you.