I bring this up now because while I wholeheartedly support and promote efforts to highlight race-based health disparities, and believe we should be putting a lot of our focus on these challenges, I also want to emphasize that I believe, as does Roberts, that these differences come purely from the social, economic and environmental impacts of the social and political category of race on people.

Which is to say Latinos do not experience higher rates of HIV and AIDS because of any unique genetic propensity or susceptibility toward the disease, but instead because of the social and economic reality faced by Latinos that lead to higher rates of HIV infections and AIDS-related illnesses. Things like lack of access to health care, homophobia, lower rates of condom use, and language barriers among other causes.

To some it may seem absurd to think that anyone would argue that race-based health disparities are a result of genetic or biological differences among racial groups, but the fact is this argument is on the rise, and it isn't new.