Epidemics of Injustice

This annual course, with lectures free and open to the public, prepares public health leaders and community members with the tools to bring about social change and address structural determinants of health.  All course meetings will take place virtually, convening each Thursday during the spring semester (excluding spring break) from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. Central time, beginning January 13, 2022.

Epidemics of Injustice is sponsored by the Collaboratory for Health Justice at the UIC School of Public Health.

How to participate

  • UIC students

    UIC students can enroll through the course catalogue in IPHS 430: Epidemics of Injustice using CRN:  44551.

  • Community members

    Register for all sessions moving forward.

  • Video archive

    Missed a class?  Watch the full videos of each 2022 course (and our 2021 course archive).

Spring 2022 course meetings

Linda Rae Murray photo.
January 13: Health equity in public health
With Linda Rae Murray, MD, MPH '80, former chief medical officer of the Cook County Department of Public Health and past president of the American Public Health Association. Watch the video.
Antonio Jimenez photo.
January 20: Harm reduction
With Antonio Jimenez, director of SPH's Community Outreach Intervention Projects, which leads Chicago-area street outreach, counseling and testing for people who use drugs and people at high risk for HIV.
David Stovall photo.
January 27: Critical race theory
With David Stovall, PhD, professor in the departments of Black Studies and Criminology, Law & Justice at UIC.
Washieka Torres photo.
February 3: Disability studies
With Washiekta Torres, a disability rights scholar, activist and Abraham Lincoln Fellow studying disabilities and human development at UIC.
A group of children who are refugees pose for a photo.
February 10: Immigrant and refugee health
With Lilian Jimenez, associate director, Office of Immigrant & Refugee Services, Illinois Department of Human Services.
An aerial view of the Stateville prison in Illinois.
February 17: Police and prison abolition
With Jackie Jahn, a social epidemiologist studying criminal legal systems & health inequities, and Jamal Spencer, an activist with the Deeper Than Water Coalition, an abolitionist group led by currently and formerly incarcerated people and their families.
A graphic image of people of various body sizes.
February 24: Fat liberation
Speaker TBA.
A child sits amidst a large chalk drawing on a sidewalk.
March 3: Indigenous and art-based health
With Michelle Napoli, a Native artist and supervisor of academic affairs and expressive therapies at Lesley University.
A Black mother plays with her young son in a children's play space.
March 10: Reproductive justice
With Indya Hairson, a community-based research program manager at Sister Love, a women-centered HIV and sexual & reproductive justice advocacy organization in Atlanta.
The Crawford Generating Station in Chicago emitting a large cloud of white smoke.
March 17: Environmental justice
With Yesenia Chavez and Ayesha T Qazi-Lampert, a PhD in Mathematics and Science Education at the UIC College of Education and an associate at the Field Museum of Chicago.
Anna Yankelev photo.
April 7: Coalition building
With Anna Yankelev, MPH in Community Health Sciences '19 and joint MBA '19, strategic planning and partnerships manager at the Lake County (IL) Health Department.
Christopher Rudd photo.
April 14: Capitalism and alternatives
With Chris Rudd, clinical professor of community-driven design at IIT Institute of Design.
Douglas Hall hosting classes at night on UIC's campus.
April 21: Conflict and crisis
Speaker TBA.
A map showing COVID-19 case rates across Midwest counties.
April 28: Radical statistics
With Fernando De Maio, PhD, professor of sociology at DePaul University and Emily Laflamme, senior analyst at the Center for Health Equity at the American Medical Association.

Course leaders

Zoë Harris headshot.

Zoë Harris is a PhD in Community Health Sciences student at the School of Public Health. Her work has focused on qualitative research projects covering topics such as suicide prevention, social determinants of health, and racism and health.  Zoë’s current research interest is indigenous wellness systems and ways we can use them to reduce and eliminate health disparities.

Wendy Avila Rodriguez headshot.

Wendy Avila Rodriguez is a program evaluator and a PhD in Maternal and Child Health student at the UIC School of Public Health. Wendy’s areas of interest include child and adolescent mental health, global health, racism and health and substance use disorders. Through her expertise in qualitative and community-based research methods, Wendy aims to assist in empowering individuals and communities to create effective and sustainable change.

Course Contact

Collaboratory for Health Justice
sphcollaboratory@uic.edu

Learn more about the Collaboratory

Video archive