MLK would be appalled by America's health injustices

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MLK would be appalled by America’s health injustices
As the nation's health crumbles under Trump, King's words from 1966 remain more timely than ever

By Tiffany D. Joseph
Published January 19, 2026 9:00AM (EST)


(Salon) In 1966 the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made a profound and prescient statement about health injustice, calling it “the most shocking and inhumane” form of inequality. Sixty years later, after notable efforts to right that wrong by expanding access to health care, most notably with the Affordable Care Act, health injustice is escalating in the United States. Our collective physical and mental health is deteriorating. Our public health infrastructure is being dismantled before our very eyes. Our health care system is on the brink of collapse.

This year in particular, as the Trump administration continues its assault on King’s legacy, there will be lots of commentary about what he would have thought and said about the current domestic and global state of affairs. But when it comes to our collective national health, King’s words remain as timely as ever.

As a sociologist who has explored the impact of health reform on health care access over the last decade, my research shows that health injustice is most pronounced among the most marginalized — immigrants, people of color, the poor. Our leaders’ policy decisions are at the crux of this injustice, permeating every part of our society. The result is lower life expectancy, more illness, social isolation and overall pessimism about our society.

Our physical and mental health is spiraling. Americans’ health outcomes are the worst among peer countries. Preventive and chronic conditions are particularly dire. We are seeing higher rates of cancer among young adults, women are dying in childbirth at unacceptable rates and gun violence still claims too many lives. ...................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2026/01/19/mlk-would-be-appalled-by-americas-health-injustices/