Clark County Public Health's new racial equity director 'willing to fight for racial equity, for justice'

Shanell Brown, a public health nurse and Tacoma native, joined Clark County Public Health as its first racial equity director in May.

"Clark County Public Health was a place that expressed readiness to move from acknowledgement of inequities to actually taking action to address them," Brown said. "That's the exact kind of environment where I do my best work. I really want to help build the infrastructure and support that makes equity durable rather than dependent on just one sole person or moment."

In June 2020, the Clark County Board of Health passed a resolution declaring racism as a public health crisis. Since then, Public Health has been steadily working behind the scenes to identify and address health inequalities.

In October 2022, the department outlined five steps to address racism as a public health crisis, one of which was hiring a racial equity director.

Brown will prioritize the planning, development and implementation of department racial equity strategies and policies in partnership with community organizations and Public Health staff, according to Marissa Armstrong, the department's spokesperson.

Brown described a moment that cemented her commitment to advancing health equity. During her nursing studies at Seattle University, her professor played a video about a woman with disabilities who was forced to quit her job because her employer-provided insurance did not adequately cover the cost of her medications.

Until then, Brown said she had never realized that for many families, access to healthcare could mean choosing between medicine, food or keeping the lights on.

"Everyone has some type of privilege," Brown said. "When I was sick, we'd just go to the hospital, go to urgent care and then if we needed medication, you just get it. I didn't think that could be a barrier."

She became a public health nurse for the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department in 2020. In 2023, Brown launched the nonprofit Shades of Divinity, which is dedicated to advancing reproductive justice and addressing maternal health disparities experienced by people of color.

"I was just really dissatisfied with the lack of resources," Brown said. "I started supporting work at the state level related to birth equity, but I felt a calling to do more."

Brown had no prior experience with starting a nonprofit or working with board members. She learned about grant writing and networking with local resources as she went.

She attributes her tenacity and commitment to justice to her parents, but specifically her father, Latarian, who grew up low-income in Mobile, Ala., and served in the military before establishing roots in Washington.

"I think he's accomplished a lot for a Black Southern man," Brown said. "I think there are a lot of odds against those who come from similar backgrounds, and so it's just inspiring to me to see what he's accomplished and what he's instilled in me. I believe I get my work ethic from him. He retired, and him now being able to just really bask in the fruits of his labor has just inspired me to take it a step further."

As she settles into her new role, Brown said she looks forward to meeting people in the community and learning how she can meet the public health needs of Clark County residents.

"I'm willing to fight for racial equity, for justice, and I think that what we need now during these times is folks that are really willing to stand and call things as they are, and to really question the status quo," Brown said. "I want to be the racial equity director that Clark County needs me to be."

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Editor's note: This is story has been updated to the correct the spelling of Shanell Brown's father, Latarian. A previous version of this story include an incorrect spelling of his name.

This story was made possible by Community Funded Journalism, a project from The Columbian and the Local Media Foundation. Top donors include the Ed and Dollie Lynch Fund, Patricia, David and Jacob Nierenberg, Connie and Lee Kearney, Steve and Jan Oliva, The Cowlitz Tribal Foundation and the Mason E. Nolan Charitable Fund. The Columbian controls all content. For more information, visit columbian.com/cfj.

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