- Levine, 66, made the contentious statement while speaking in a video aiming to enhance health awareness for black communities during Black History Month
- The transgender Biden official declared: ‘Climate change is having a disproportionate effect on the physical and mental health of black communities’
- The video has since gone viral on X, formerly Twitter , as social media users slammed the federal official for making wild claims about climate change
Assistant Secretary of Health Rachel Levine has claimed that climate change ‘disproportionately effects’ the mental and physical wellbeing of black Americans.
Levine, 66, made the contentious statement while speaking in a video aiming to enhance health awareness for black communities during Black History Month.
The transgender Biden official declared: ‘Climate change is having a disproportionate effect on the physical and mental health of black communities.’
Levine continued: ‘Black Americans are more likely than white Americans to live areas in housing that increase their susceptibility to climate related health issues.’
The video has since gone viral on X, formerly Twitter , as social media users slammed the federal official for making wild claims about climate change.
A user incorporated a laughter soundtrack into the video, underscoring the resemblance between reality and an old Saturday Night Live sketch.
The wrote: ‘The “leaders” in charge are not serious people, our country is beyond satire. The rest of world is indeed laughing at us.’
Another person rebutted Levine’s statement, saying: ‘I grew up and worked in predominantly black communities. NEVER once have I heard a black person express concern for climate change.’
The video has gained more than 40,000 views as of Friday evening but has only accumulated 58 likes.
Many expressed disbelief in response to the video, with one person stating, ‘I wish this was satire. It’s real,’ and another adding, ‘The world is laughing at us.’
One person wrote: ‘This sums pretty much sums up everything jacked up in America right now. Good lord.’
Levine is the highest ranking openly transgender federal official in the country and was made a four-star admiral of the public health service.
She sported her admiral’s uniform in the video collaboration with Office of Minority Health for the initiative titled ‘Advancing Better Health Through Better Understanding for Black Communities.’
Levine, who transitioned in 2011, also laid out statistics to support her claim that environmental problems have disproportionate effect black Americans.
’65 percent of Black Americans report feeling anxious about climate changes’ impact,’ she said.
‘We are working with providers and community leaders to identify innovative approaches that empower communities to address the health consequences linked to climate change,’ Levine added.
Levine has sparked controversy on multiple occasions as she endorsed providing to offer gender-affirming care to minors.
She praised an Alaska gender-affirming care clinic in August last year, asserting the treatment it offered was ‘lifesaving medical care.’
The Alaska-based company she praised promotes ideas that children should learn that doctors ‘assign’ gender to babies by making a ‘guess’ – while also promoting the use of ‘gender-inclusive biology.’
Teachers and educators need to speak to children ‘without assuming that there are only two sexes and that everyone within a particular sex is the same.’
Instead of using the word ‘mother’ in these conversations, they recommend using terms such as ‘egg producer’ or ‘carrier.’
The transgender assistant secretary also said that children can go through ‘the wrong puberty’ last year.
‘The treatment options for gender-affirming care for transgender youth really are evidence-based,’ Levine said.
She had been asked about the possibility of keeping transgender youth from seeking body-altering treatment until at least the age of 18.
Levine has previously said so-called gender-affirming care for minors has the ‘highest support’ from the Biden administration.