WHEREAS, The life expectancy at birth for Black Californians is 76.2 years of age, five years shorter than the state average and the lowest life expectancy of all racial and ethnic groups; and

WHEREAS, Black Californians experience the highest death rates from breast, cervical, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancer compared to all racial groups; and

WHEREAS, Black birthing people in California were six times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than White birthing people, 56.2 compared to 9.4 pregnancy-related deaths per 100,000, respectively; and

WHEREAS, Black birthing people experience higher rates of prenatal depressive symptoms and disproportionately lower use of postpartum counseling treatments and services than their White counterparts; and

WHEREAS, Black Californians have higher rates of serious psychological distress than White Californians, 5.4 percent compared to 2.9 percent; and

WHEREAS, Nearly one-half of Black adults in June 2020 reported experiencing an economic challenge because of the COVID-19 pandemic, three times greater than White adults; and

WHEREAS, According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), health equity means that everyone has a fair and just opportunity to be as healthy as possible, which requires removing obstacles to health, such as poverty, discrimination, and their consequences, including powerlessness and lack of access to good jobs with fair pay, quality education and housing, safe environments, and health care; and

WHEREAS, In an effort to bring awareness to the long-standing structural inequities that negatively impact the health and well-being of Black Californians, as well as to uplift existing efforts to address such inequities and dismantle the environmental and systemic barriers that contribute to disproportionate health outcomes and achieve racial justice, social justice, and environmental justice, the California Black Health Network is recognizing May 1, 2023, to May 5, 2023, and every first week of May thereafter, as Black Health Equity Advocacy Week; and

WHEREAS, Black Health Equity Advocacy Week will help bring communities, organizations, and individuals together to mobilize, strategize, and collaborate on ways to break down the structural barriers that currently exist in California, while mapping out a framework to advance Black health equity in the Golden State; now, therefore, be it