When we don’t invest in communities, that have historically been marginalized, underserved, and just plain forgotten, how do we expect people to overcome addiction or “fight cancer”

In a post by Elizabeth F. Franklin on LinkedIn, it says, “This is why I’m passionate about addressing disparities in cancer care.
My first social work job was in drug and alcohol addiction treatment in Kentucky. The extraordinary and determined women who sought treatment did the work and overcame their challenges only to return to communities that did not have the infrastructure or resources to support them. I would see many of them ultimately come back to the clinic.
When we don’t invest in communities, whether in rural or urban areas, that have historically been marginalized, underserved, and just plain forgotten, how do we expect people to overcome addiction or “fight cancer?” We don’t start on a level playing field and then we are surprised when people struggle with chronic or life-limiting illnesses.
This isn’t about a fight to be healthier. It is not about individual choices. It’s about systematic discrimination and generational poverty among other devastating factors. It’s a lack of access to prevention, screening, and care. There are a host of resources that many of us take for granted that are so far out of reach of millions of people in this country. We know the problems and it’s time to deliver the answers.”

Source: Elizabeth F. Franklin/LinkedIn