Abstract: In this talk, Dr. Agénor will discuss the ways in which U.S. state laws promote, or buffer, structural racism in the employment, education, health care, immigration, and criminal legal systems, among others, and impact health inequities across and within racialized social groups. Additionally, she will explore opportunities and challenges of using state laws to measure structural racism over time, with the goal of advancing research and practice on structural racism and racialized health inequities in the U.S. 

Bio: Dr. Madina Agénor, ScD, MPH is Associate Professor in the Departments of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Epidemiology and Center for Health Promotion and Health Equity at Brown University School of Public Health. She is also Adjunct Faculty at The Fenway Institute and leads the Sexual Health and Reproductive Experiences (SHARE) Lab at Brown University. As a social epidemiologist and interdisciplinary health equity scholar, Dr. Agénor investigates the structural and social determinants of health inequities using an intersectional lens and mixed- methods research approach. Specifically, she uses quantitative and qualitative research methods to examine how multilevel social, health care, and policy factors shape sexual and reproductive health across and within minoritized sexual orientation, racial/ethnic, and gender identity groups, with a focus on multiply marginalized populations. Dr. Agénor completed postdoctoral research training in cancer prevention equity at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (Harvard Chan) and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and was Visiting Research Faculty at the Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS at Yale University. She holds a Doctor of Science (ScD) in Social and Behavioral Sciences with a concentration in Women, Gender, and Health from Harvard Chan, a Master of Public Health (MPH) in Sociomedical Sciences from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, and a bachelor’s degree in Community Health and Gender Studies from Brown University.