This book defines social injustice as the active denial or violation based on the perception of the inferiority of specific groups. These groups are socially defined in terms of racial or ethnic status, language, country of origin, socioeconomic status, age, gender, sexual orientation or other perceived group characterisitics. Social injustice manifests in many ways ranging from various forms of overt discrimination to the wide gaps between the "haves" and the "have-nots" within a country or between richer and poorer countries. It increases the prevalence of risk factors and hazardous exposures, which in turn lead to higher rates of disease, injury, disability, and premature death. Public health professionals as well as students need to have a clear understanding of social injustice in order to address these problems, but relatively few books address the wide range of issues involved.

This book will enable readers to understand social injustice and its underlying mechanisms, and as a result, will prepare them to recognize, document, investigate, and prevent social injustice and its effects on health. This book is organized so that health professionals, students in the health professions, and others will find it of practical value in public health and medical practice, research, education, policy development, and advocacy.

Readership: Public Health students and professionals

Barry S. Levy, Adjunct Professor of Community Health, Tufts University School of Medicine, USA, and Victor W. Sidel, Distinguished University Professor of Social Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, USA

Part I: Introduction
1: Victor W. Sidel and Barry S. Levy: The Nature of Social Injustice and Its Impact on Public Health
Part II: How the Health of Specific Population Groups Is Affected by Social Injustice
2: Michael Marmot and Ruth Bell: The Socioeconomically Disadvantaged
3: Carol Easley Allen and Cheryl E. Easley: Racial and Ethnic Minorities
4: Stacey J. Rees and Wendy Chavkin: Women
5: Sara Rosenbaum and Chung-Hi H. Yoder: Children
6: Carroll L. Estes and Steven P. Wallace: Older People
7: Emilia Lombardi and Talia Bettcher: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender/Transsexual Individuals
8: Nora Ellen Groce: People with Disabilities
9: Ernest M. Drucker: Incarcerated People
10: Lillian Gelberg and Lisa Arangua: Homeless People
11: Michael Toole: Forced Migrants: Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons
Part III: How Social Injustice Affects Health
12: H. Jack Geiger: Medical Care
13: Paul F. Farmer and Joia S. Mukherjee: Infectious Diseases
14: J. Larry Brown: Nutrition
15: Derek Yach: Chronic Diseases
16: Carles Muntaner and Jeanne Geiger-Brown: Mental Health
17: James A. Mercy: Assaultive Violence and War
18: Colin D. Butler and Anthony J. McMichael: Environmental Health
19: Andrea Kidd Taylor and Linda Rae Murray: Occupational Safety and Health
20: Myron Allukian, Jr. and Alice M. Horowitz: Oral Health
21: Barry S. Levy and Victor W. Sidel: International Health: Problems in Developing Countries
Part IV. What Needs to be Done to Prevent Social Injustice and Minimize Its Impact on Health
22: Sofia Gruskin and Paula Braveman: Addressing Social Injustice in a Human Rights Context
23: Alonzo Plough: Promoting Social Justice Through Public Health Policies, Programs, and Services
24: Robert E. Aronson, Kay Lovelace, John W. Hatch, and Tony L. Whitehead: Strengthening Communities and the Roles of Individuals in Community Life
25: Robert S. Lawrence: Promoting Social Justice Through Education in Public Health
26: Nancy Krieger: Researching Critical Questions on Social Justice and Public Health: An Ecosocial Perspective
27: Peter Weiss and Henry Freedman: Protecting Human Rights through International and National Law
28: Richard Jolly: Promoting Equitable and Sustainable Human Development
Appendix: Organizations Addressing Issues of Social Injustice and Public Health