Abstract
“Language is alive—and we trust that our imaginations, our explorations, our research, and our practice will spark new words, new possibilities, and new inclusivity . . . We welcome that!”
Two years after our first “The Power of Words” commentary, we at Health Promotion Practice (HPP) renew our commitment to accurate and inclusive language that reflects the “respect, collaboration, and essential hopefulness of the art and science of our field” (Roe & Mata, 2019, p. 153) and is grounded in two decades of HPP’s collective voice and vision. When our first “Power of Words” was published, pandemic was for many people just a vocabulary word in the company of endemic and epidemic. Two years and 2,227,003 deaths (as of January 31, 2021; Johns Hopkins University of Medicine, 2021) later, we learned that COVID-19 went from first use to dictionary entry in just 34 days—more quickly than any other word to date. Also added this year were long hauler and additional meanings for pod and bubble, as well as decarceration, folx, and Second Gentleman (Merriam-Webster, 2021)—evoking not only the reality of the pandemic but also the progress and possibilities of our times.
As we celebrate 20+ years of HPP, we do so in the context of bearing witness to the pain and heartbreak of a global pandemic exacerbated by structural racism, science denial, and the shameful and dangerous politicization of governmental response to a public health crisis. We begin 2021 with renewed hope and optimism that our journal and our field will reflect the cultural humility and structural competency that are part of “our lane” (see Roe, 2020) in the pandemic and beyond. We are grateful for the commitment and leadership of our authors, reviewers, and Editorial Board members. We are so proud of our HPP interns, who have developed our new HPP Notes resource (see http://healthpromotionpracticenotes.com/), elevating people, practice, and voices behind the words on our pages. Our commitment to the power of words was the spark for The HPP Podcast where, each week, you can hear authors in conversation about the robust intersection of their work, lives, identities, and backgrounds (see https://anchor.fm/health-promotion-practice).
Beyond the HPP family, we are inspired by our colleagues in academic publishing who have shared their antiracism and equity agendas and published work that informs, reforms, and transforms. The Editorial team at Health Affairs shared their commitment to equitable participation, new voices, and introspection (Weil, 2021). Boyd et al. (2020) proposed standards for publishing on racial health inequities that are increasingly cited, shared, and adopted (Andrews et al., 2021; Bailey et al., 2021; Khazanchi et al., 2020). How we name and frame racism—in our lives, in our research, and in the words we use and share—matters (Ford & Airhihenbuwa, 2010; Ford et al., 2019). Adding to our resources for accurate, respectful, and inclusive language (Roe & Mata, 2019), we recommend the Health in Justice Action Lab (2020) for reporters, researchers, and practitioners communicating about substance use and addiction and the American Psychological Association Style Guide (American Psychological Association, 2020) resources on bias-free language.
In the midst of all the chaos, tragedy, challenge, and—yes—hope! that defined 2020—we are so grateful for the spirit, the science, the resilience, and the resistance that our HPP authors and so many other powerful and persistent voices have added to our collective lexicon. Thirty-one days into a new year and 11 days since poet laureate Amanda Gorman (2021) gave new meaning to the power of words, we cherish her inaugural call to action: The new dawn blooms as we free it. For there is always light. If only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.
In the days and months and years to come, in the work we do, and the words we share: Who and what will be brave enough to see? And who and what will we be brave enough to be?
