Habits of the Heart: Advancing Racial Equity in a Community Health Coalition

Abstract: Race Forward describes racial equity as a process of eliminating racial disparities and improving outcomes for everyone. It involves changing policies, practices, systems, and structures by prioritizing measurable change in the lives of people of color. This paper introduces Parker Palmer’s Habits of the Heart as a way of knowing and being that involves our minds, emotions, meaning, and purpose. To advance racial equity our efforts focused on 1) an understanding that we are all in this together; 2) an ability to hold tension in life-giving ways, 3) a capacity to create community, and 4) a sense of personal voice and agency.

Methods: In-depth interviews with community leaders and community researchers in a multisector coalition were used.

Results: Findings reflect three major themes related to community flourishing.

Conclusions: The conclusions provide practice-based examples from the arts, spirituality, and human flourishing for ethical actions in multisector health coalitions.