This is just to say
We have stopped
tolerating your oppression
that you’ve imposed
for centuries
and which
you were probably
planning
to destroy us with.
Forgive us
it was long overdue.
Freedom is so sweet
and so powerful.
-Christine Williams
(based on the William Carlos Williams format which can be found here)
“When we think of police brutality, it’s normally men we envisage as the victims” Olivia Marks. This has been a huge concern of mine in regards to the black lives matter movement. Black men who suffer brutality at the hands of police are, more often than women, shoved into the spotlight of national media. We see these images and hear their names so often that it can be easy to forget about the women who are also victims.
And while some would argue that women suffer a different type of racism at the hands of police, insinuating that it’s not as brutal as what men face, gender often plays a small role when it comes to racism in the police force.
If you haven’t read the Guardian piece on Sandra Bland and Serena Williams yet, Olivia Marks does a much better job at describing each incident in detail.
Let’s start with the best athlete of all time, Serena Williams.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few weeks, you know that she won the Wimbledon championship for a 6th time during her illustrious athletic career. Think about a time when you felt confident, powerful, and strong, characteristics I’m sure Williams feels as she dominates on the court.
Now, imagine someone coming along to belittle you in your moment of confidence. Maybe they comment on your performance, or give a particularly mean-spirited criticism. Or even worse, they criticize you for something you have no control over.
The amount of hateful criticism Serena faced after her most recent win is disgusting. The main gripe among these critics, who I can only imagine are adolescent white teenagers in denial about their physique, is that she is “built like a man.” Since when did having a visibly strong physique equate with looking masculine?
Oh yea, I forgot. Women who body build have to wear bikinis so we can delineate their gender.
This obsession with “body image” shone through in The New York Times most recent piece that focused on Williams. In the article, white, petite, young tennis players are asked about their bodies and how they look/play in comparison to Williams.
One notable quote from the highest paid female athlete, Maria Shirapova:
“I always want to be skinnier with less cellulite; I think that’s every girl’s wish,” she said, laughing.
I can’t get through that one without cringing. As Amelia McDonnel Perry mentions in her criticism of the article, the most frustrating part of the piece is how it focuses on Williams. If it had simply been an article on body image and sports/tennis, using a plethora of viewpoints of tennis players, the writer could have pulled it off well. But because the piece makes Serena’s body type the “other” in this homogeneous group of athletes, the obvious racial undertones creep to the surface. While this piece doesn’t go so far as to equate Williams with a “gorilla” like those on Twitter did, it hints at the idea that black women do not fit into the metaphorical box of predominantly white female sports.
If you’re still unclear on all the issues here, watch this video:
How does this relate to Sandra Bland?
Once we as a society have a group which we can call “other,” these attitudes become dangerous. Those who equate Serena’s physical strength with masculinity no longer see her as a woman. Instead, they see her as an animal with brute strength and who, potentially, could be dangerous. When this erroneous stereotype is applied to all women who look similar to Serena Williams, it’s problematic. Those in power who hold this perspective are the most troubling.
The police involved in Sandra Bland’s tragic death claimed that she was combative on the side of the road when they pulled her over for improper signalling. If the police were exposed to the derogatory comments about Williams earlier that week, those racist and sexist undertones were present in their consciousness. Even if they didn’t agree with the criticism, they viewed Sandra Bland in a different light then they might have before. If she was combative, they saw her as a threat. One police officer very clearly slams Bland’s head against the concrete, in an attempt to subdue her. Why would he need to use such brute force in this situation?
The police officers didn’t see Bland as a person; they saw her as a part of the other who didn’t belong. This dangerous concept ultimately led to Bland’s sudden and unexplained death. The claim that she committed suicide is an obvious ploy of the police department hoping to avoid any serious investigations.
For many reasons, police brutality against women of color is swept under the rug quickly after it occurs. The archetype of the “angry black woman” often goes as justification for police officers to handle women with undue force. Layered with the inappropriate discussion of black women in the media (conversations which usually focus on their hair, dress, physical physique, and behavior), misogyny is as detrimental as ever to black women’s well being. It’s critical to be aware of what’s happening and to stay vocal.
“If you are a Black person, you can be one police encounter away from death. Any age. Any gender. Any class background.” -Jamilah Lemieux
Here I was, typing a response to some recent sexist comments and behaviors I experienced from men in New York City.
And then this happened.
It would be nearly pointless to discuss the obviously discriminatory way that this terrorist is being analyzed by popular media outlets. As usual, he’s a “disturbed loner” who possibly had friends of different races. The backlash against labeling him as a racist terrorist comes in the ironically just idea of “innocent until proven guilty” (perhaps that’s why we’re still calling him the shooting suspect, as if there is any doubt that he carried out this massacre after his confession.)
I would rather discuss the tragically ironic idea that this self-proclaimed racist, who wore pro-apartheid paraphernalia on his jacket, was given the honor of wearing a bullet proof vest when finally captured in North Carolina.
2 things:
1. He was able to flee as far as North Carolina before eventually being captured ALIVE. Walter Scott barely made it 20 feet after a traffic stop before a police officer shot him dead. The invisibility of white privilege made his escape almost a success as he drove 250 miles north of Charleston.
2. Watch this video where the terrorist is gently escorted into a police car after shooting 9 innocent people dead. Now, see how these police officers treat these female teenagers during a pool party in Texas. Or, how Eric Garner is treated by Staten Island police after reportedly selling illegal cigarettes.
Don’t see the difference? In all situations, according to our society’s skewed view of what justice is, each person getting what they deserve. A killer will be put on trial to spew his racist ideology in court while people of color get “what they deserve” in the eyes of law enforcement. If this 21 year old were part of ISIS, and had committed the same crime, perhaps we’d see an investigation into a larger group motive; maybe he was part of a global terrorist plot. No, the police decided that he had acted alone. We will probably hear the insanity defense as a misguided way to address our own fear of what human beings are capable of.
While I would love to delve into the individual lives of each innocent victim, I’m afraid it might not effect change. In each instance of racially motivated violence, we know the name of the perpetrator and the victims’ names become hashtags. Those close to them remember their legacies but the broader society forgets their names as quickly as it forgets the discussion on gun law reform.
What would it take to change the nature of the way we analyze and deal with cases of racist hatred in the U.S? We can talk ourselves hoarse about his motives and personality, but it doesn’t address the larger, structural causes of his actions. We attempt to brush these things off as a way expedite the healing process. We, as a country, fail to address the real motivations of racism and hatred as a means to avoid those difficult conversations that make us uncomfortable.
Racism is not a fad or a trend. It isn’t going away and unaddressed racist violence will only exacerbate and encourage others who share this dangerous ideology to commit more violence and openly express their views.
“I was sentenced to life plus 30 years by an all-White jury. What I saw in prison was wall-to-wall Black flesh in chains. Women caged in cells. But we’re the terrorists. It just doesn’t make sense.” Assata Shakur
It seems difficult to keep up with the “newest” person of color who dies at the hands of the police lately. Either the predominance of these occurrences has picked up or the media coverage prevalent on social media has made it too easy for us to share the newest data, name, or viral meme.
People of color are dying. This list, although possibly not exhaustive, is difficult to read. The stories of black people killed at the hands of officers in the past 15 years. Even more difficult to think about the number of times police officers have not been charged with crimes after these deaths occur. The value of a life, in comparison to that of an officer of the law, is null and void. (But if you’re keeping score, black bodies have always been considered a commodity.)
People across the country, the world even, celebrated when the 6 police officers were charged in the aftermath of Freddie Gray’s death. After peaceful protests that attracted the attention of the National Guard and prompted city wide curfews, it seemed that Baltimore might finally get the justice it sought.
Or, maybe the case will go the route of Eric Garner, Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams, John Crawford, or the countless number of transgender people of color who are killed by police without swift justice being brought on the officers.
But wait, you say. Those cases didn’t end in indictments. This case just HAS to end in “justice” because Marilyn Mosby is here to save the day (let’s be clear, no shade to my fellow HBCU graduate.) Let’s have hope that this case will have a similar result to the “loud music” trial. This guy went to prison for life for killing Jordan Davis. They can’t possibly let ALL of these officers off.
Good point. Perhaps we’ll see justice for the 6 police officers who allowed Freddie Gray’s death to become an inevitability. That will definitely compensate his family for his untimely death and, if we’re lucky, heal the wound of racism that’s been ravaging our urban communities for decades.
An indictment is far from progress. Remember Aiyana Jones? (Possibly not if you still think only black men are killed by police.) After police conducted a “no knock” raid on her home, she died of a gunshot wound. The case was later dismissed (but not before the indicted officer tried to blame the death on Aiyana’s grandmother bumping into him, causing the gun to fire.)
How do we know that the 6 officers involved in Freddie Gray’s death won’t convince the jury that they had “reasonable” cause to treat him the way that they did? That it was a necessary use of force to keep him in the police wagon, handcuffed, without restraint? How do we know the officers won’t convince the jury that Gray was a threat to their safety and were simply standing their ground when he had his legally owned knife?
At this point, I’m not willing to put my faith in a justice system that arbitrarily decides when a 12 year old boy in a park is a threat to the public. I’m not willing to believe that a system built on the backs of people of color is, all of a sudden, willing to drop those systemically racist notions for the fairy tale of a post-racial society. And I certainly will not condemn those who react to this racist system with violence or “looting;” it’s obvious that black bodies will be policed whether they behave “peacefully” or not.
So until we begin to admit that the knife is there, please don’t ask for my opinion on the “all lives matter” movement. And please don’t ask if I think violence is the “answer.”
“The master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house.” Audrey Lorde
Women are people. Seems obvious, right? Sure, each society has its different ideas about femininity and masculinity; in some places women are expected not to wear pants while sex “sells” in the United States. But the way we are trained to view gender (yes, we are brainwashed to believe gender is a social construct) says so much about our treatment of women and men. Many people struggle with the concepts of asexuality and fluid sexuality. Deconstructing these ideas in this post would take way too long. But possibly the most detrimental and destructive perspectives are those that don’t allow for men and women to be complex beings.
Men play sports Women wear makeup
Men work regular jobs Women are caretakers
Men don’t cry Women are irrational
Men propose to women Women should marry
Men own Women are objects
I’ve had countless encounters with people around the world during my solo travels where they expected me to be “owned” by a man in one way or another.
“You’re traveling alone? Where’s your boyfriend? Aren’t you afraid to travel by yourself?”
The easy way to avoid these conversations is to laugh it off and agree that yes, I am still young and sure I still have time.
The difficult thing to do would be to say “No! I’m actually not interesting in conceiving children at this time or in the future. I am interested, however, in earning my PhD and improving the lives of children, who already exist, in a meaningful way. (She’s cold, they would say. She’ll come around and change her mind soon.)
The difficult thing to do would be to hold the conversation about gender roles with those with which we are closest: parents, siblings, good friends, and older relatives.
The difficult (and perhaps dangerous) thing would be to stop on the street when men choose to catcall us and ask them why they chose to use monikers like “baby” and “gorgeous” to refer to us. And no, it isn’t simply a compliment.
Oh wait, some of us are trying that already. Like agreeing with compliments from men; turns out that only gets us labeled as vain and “full of ourselves.” *sigh*
If I could shake every one of the young girls at my school and tell them to stop tearing each other down, I would never have time to teach. It’s enough that they encounter boys who take out their hormonal uncertainties on the self confidence and will of their female counterparts. It pains me to see 11, 12, and 13 year old girls bully and harass each other with their hurtful words. With the additional factor of technological communication in this generation, it’s hard to believe girls today have any self confidence at all.
And it’s not just an issue among children; women of all ages are QUICK to tear another woman down if she poses a “threat” in some way. Whether it’s those social constructs that have been pounded into our heads since birth to view other successful women as competitors, this mindset is toxic to the survival and success of the female community.
Some feminists are also hesitant, for some reason or another, to include the LGBTQIA community into their call for equal rights. How can we tear down other women who are fighting for the rights of all of us? Does our sexual orientation really matter in the fight to be considered as people? Really…?
Unfortunately colorism is another issue under the dissension umbrella that we face. The history of the feminist movement in the US has largely ignored and excluded a HUGE population of women that were struggling for a vast majority of their rights. Unfortunately, the fight for equality among women of color is two fold: you’re both not white and not male. It doesn’t surprise me that women of color don’t consider themselves feminists because of the movement’s sordid history at the turn of the 20th century. Womanism was born out of this division, but unfortunately some women of color continue to feel disheartened by the idea of seemingly having to put their gender before their race.
Even Beyonce couldn’t make this popular. Unfortunately, the stigma regarding feminism is bra-burning-man-hating-P.M.Sing-rage-filled-lesbians who can’t help but to disseminate their pamphlets about why men are evil.
No, in fact we’re quite friendly. Or not. We’re doctors and teachers and lawyers and pilots. Or not. Sometimes we’re stay at home moms and mechanics and librarians and astrophysicists. We cry in public. Or not. We like sappy romantic movies. Or not.
Feminists come in all shapes and sizes. Some of my best male friends consider themselves to be feminists because they believe in the social, economic, and political equality of people.
Take a deep breath before you pass judgement on someone who thinks all feminists are lesbians.
Unless they’re Pat Robertson. In this case, run.
And seek out resources, because you’re not in this alone! It can be difficult to talk with people about a subject you might not be well versed in. It’s even more frustrating when people THINK they are experts when they primarily speak from illogical and broad claims. Despite the scary world of internet conversations out there, safe spaces for women exist (BTW, you should go back and click on those links 🙂 they’re pretty awesome) that allow for open conversations.
Encourage the women in your life to be happy. Even if you don’t agree with all of their life choices, guess what? It’s not your life! You have your own to live and we all deserve people in our space who lift us up instead of passing judgement. Seriously, society oppresses us enough.
Public education is arguably the most important free social service in the United States. K-12 education is vital, obviously, to having an informed, literate society of citizens who can shape the world around them. 
There isn’t one particular model of a public school system that works for every student in every state. Large public school systems in urban cities have different needs and functions than smaller, rural schools.
The need for effective teachers is a commonality among every school in the U.S. Without teachers, schools would not run. Without effective teachers, schools would run themselves into the ground.
What does an effective teacher look like?
According to the No Child Left Behind Act (I know, not the most salient piece of legislation during the Bush era), a highly qualified teacher “must be fully certified by the state or have passed the state teacher licensure exam and have a license to teach in the state In addition, highly qualified teachers must demonstrate their knowledge of the subject they teach through certain credentials or test scores.” The nuance between highly qualified and effective shows itself mostly in the classroom. A highly qualified teacher knows the content very well and can relay it to students in practical, efficient ways. An effective teacher can engage students in the content, helping them make connections between disciplines and making the information “sticky.”
Becoming an effective teacher is hard work. It takes many, many years in the classroom and constant rounds of feedback and evaluations. Because there are so many different variables in the classroom that affect a teacher’s effectiveness, it can sometimes feel like swimming in the Atlantic without a life preserver.
And where are these “highly qualified” teachers coming from?
Colleges and universities provide traditional routes to prepare future educators. As an education major or minor, you complete your content and pedagogy courses that lead to teacher certification in the state where you teach. Some school districts hire teachers who have recently graduated while others require some experience in the classroom.
Sounds like a simple enough solution. Train teachers, they go forth and teach.
BUT the problem arises when schools in low income neighborhoods do not have effective OR highly qualified teachers. Teachers are not compensated as well in schools that lack access to funding so they turn to other neighborhoods that will ensure their careers are sustainable. This leads to high teacher turnover rate, with many different teachers coming and going each year.
This leaves the country’s neediest schools with less-than-effective teachers guiding our children. We could raise the funding of teachers, but that money comes from somewhere else in the budget (usually sports and arts programs).
This critical intersection of high needs schools and high demand for teachers catalyzed the movement of alternative teacher training programs.
Most notably of all, Teach for America.
We needed more teachers in the neediest schools. The solution was to incentivize the teaching profession and make it attractive to recent graduates. Targeting young, energetic and hopeful Americans eliminates the need to establish a sustainability plan. Younger teachers are less likely to complain about a 12 hour work day if they think it contributes to the overall mission of closing the achievement gap.
Teach for America seeks to “eliminate educational inequity” by providing America’s schools with teachers (and future leaders). After a 5 week training institute during the summer after your college graduation, you’re ready to step into the classroom as a full-time teacher. Without having taken many of the teaching certification exams, you are enrolled in a master’s of teaching program in conjunction with working in a high-needs school (in a location you may not be very familiar with).
What does it take to be a TFA’er?
A bachelor’s degree with at least a 2.5 GPA.
U.S citizen or permanent resident status.
That’s it.
No, you needn’t have studied education in college. You don’t need to have taken any prior background checks, teacher exams, or physical exams.
A more informal assessor of your “worthiness” is to have taken on leadership roles, of any kind, either in high school or college. An RA in a college dormitory is an example.
Before I continue, let’s note that some teachers who are a part of the program did study education as part of their undergraduate program. These teachers use Teach for America as a launching pad into their long-term careers. Others who apply to the program become passionate about school reform and become phenomenal long-term school teachers and leaders.
Now, “NCLB also requires states to take steps to ensure that low-income and minority students are not taught by teachers who are not highly qualified at higher rates than are non-minority and low-income students.” This is relatively problematic for TFA because all of it’s recruits start off as “not highly qualified.” The question over whether low-income students are taught by these teachers at a higher rate than their non-low income counterparts is up in the air.
The controversy over TFA, charter schools, and school reforms is plenty. Just check out the #resisttfa tweets of folks who are encouraging college graduates to reconsider recruiting with the organization. Other more abrupt criticisms include those who say TFA acts as a colonization method. “By default, Corps Members rationalize their place in the classroom with a savior complex. They act as some sort of missionary from the privileged class, here to save the poor kids…well, save the poor kids for two years before going on to a more prestigious career.” (Taken from “The Catalyst” an independent student newspaper at Colorado College.)
Elitist white savior organizations like TFA address the wrong side of the problem. The solution to poor school systems, according to TFA, is to send hordes of privileged recent graduates into low performing schools and “enlighten” the children who don’t know any better. The victims of the corrupt system are being addressed instead of the perpetrators. Have we stopped to ask WHY these schools are in decline? Have we asked WHY these children are living in poverty? Can we find out why less than equal education is inextricably linked to poverty? Perhaps that’s too much of a socialist ideal.
Apparently TFA is having some trouble recruiting recent college grads, most because of the recovering economy in conjunction with the growing criticism of the training methods. Ironically enough, TFA has difficulty in confronting the criticism it receives, spending millions of dollars on PR campaigns that promote the benefits to recruits.
In any case, we need teachers. That’s an indisputable fact. But if our best answer to the lack of effective teachers is to recruit those with absolutely no experience into our neediest classrooms, we’ve failed our kids.
You may be familiar with a series of stories called Humans of New York, which is run by the photographer, Brandon Stanton.
I love viewing every story shared on the HONY facebook page; the small snippets of the lives of New Yorkers exemplify why I chose to live in Brooklyn. The photographer is able to capture a human connection in the facial expressions of all of his interviewees in a city that’s known for being cold and isolated.
Imagine my surprise when I viewed the first of many shared photos of residents in Brownsville, NY (the neighborhood where I live and teach). If you’re familiar with the HONY series, you might think the first Brownsville interview was with Ms. Lopez or Vidal, the young man who spurred a huge fundraiser for his middle school. The first post in Brownsville actually featured a man.
Outside of a housing project building, the man describes how he was stabbed with a screwdriver at 15 years old while waiting for the school bus, leaving him paralyzed. Thousands of comments from around the globe sent him warm wishes, prayers, and good thoughts. More posts of new residents followed, ranging from Vietnam veterans to high school students.
Then the photographer featured Vidal. A boy who attends a local charter school, Vidal looks up to his principal Ms. Lopez. After Just a few short weeks, HONY managed to raise over 1 million dollars to fund a “Send our kids to Harvard” college trip, summer programs for the charter school’s scholars, and a scholarship fund named after Vidal. Worldwide donations have poured into support this school and it’s students, and the publicity has even sent Vidal to the White House for a meet and greet with President Obama. It all sounds wonderful; now these students finally have a chance to escape the “underserved” neighborhood where they grew up and lead successful lives.
All thanks to a college trip to the most prestigious ivy league school in the nation. (Nevermind the fact that Columbia University, another Ivy, is a mere subway stop away, in the same city where these students live.)
It’s awesome that this school now has the funds to do something meaningful for its scholars. However, the implications of this entire story touch on something very disturbing with the way our society views black children in black neighborhoods.
The infatuation with black children
Brownsville is an infamous neighborhood in New York City. When viewers saw the first post of the man in the wheel chair outside of the massive housing project, no one rushed to start a kick starter campaign to ensure he was taken care of. No one was concerned with whether or not his building is completely wheelchair accessible or if he struggles as a differently-abled man living in a neighborhood that doesn’t provide elevators at local subway stops. What is it, exactly, about black children that moves people to action? Is it their supposed innocence, or lack of self-advocacy? The idea of “pulling yourself up by the boot straps” is an out-dated perspective that pervades our society. Adults should be able to care for themselves by finding a job and a place to live, This Darwinian mindset leaves many Americans, including those with mental illness, falling through the cracks of a socioeconomic system that promises an equal opportunity for everyone.
Just send them to Harvard
The idea of sending a group of New York scholars all the way to Massachusetts on a college trip seems excessive.There are incredible schools right here in Manhattan (NYU, Columbia, Fordham, Hunter) and Brooklyn has plenty of post-secondary options for students. Why not send these kids on a tour of some of these universities? What is about Harvard that instantly presumes success? In my own biased opinion, I would love to see these scholars go further south to visit an HBCU so they can be exposed to the many, many options available to them outside of the nearly unattainable goal of ivy league universities.
The reality is, many of our students will not attend a four year university after high school. This would make our economy completely unsustainable, but it also ignores the fact that some children simply don’t want to become doctors and lawyers. Some of them want to open their own businesses or become carpenters (among other things that do not require an ivy league degree.) Community colleges and smaller state schools are great options for those who do not want to leave home (or cannot, due to family obligations).
Let’s preface this by saying that I’m sure Brandon holds only the best intent when he interviews New Yorkers around the city. I’m sure when he and Ms. Lopez imagined the idea for a fundraiser for the Mott Hall Academy students, they only wanted to do something good. But, when a white, male, privileged photographer comes to a neighborhood like Brownsville and deems that the only opportunity for it’s children to “find a way out” is through Harvard, there’s a problem. White people have, for what seems like an eternity, swept into countries, cities, and neighborhoods seeking to make a difference. They go on mission trips to spread their religion. They teach English in third-world countries. They take a year off after college to “find themselves” by serving others.
This situation is no different. Starting a fundraiser like this supports the notion that people of color cannot advocate for themselves and be successful without the assistance of white people and the cultural capital they can provide. The community of Brownsville needs more than financial support to reinvent itself, especially if the trend of gentrification in Brooklyn pushes itself even further east.
We have to encourage our children to advocate for their own success. By telling them that a four year university is nearly their only avenue to success, we’ve done them a disservice. Communities like Brownsville need compassionate leaders that are willing to invest in what matters for the long term.
If you’re anything like me, you avoid the dentist’s drill like the plague. I hadn’t been to the dentist in quite a while thanks to traveling around without insurance. But, I finally bit the bullet and made an appointment at a dental office within walking distance of my apartment. Although I’m relieved I don’t need any further work done, this trip got me thinking about how people take care of themselves in the neighborhood where I live and teach.
Down the street from Popeye’s wedged in between a small pharmacy and a liquor store, I was greeted with a locked door to the very small dental office. Another patient opened the door before the receptionist could get up from her cramped desk. She looked for a new patient form; “Christina, right?” Err, not quite, but I let it slide this time. I sat in the waiting room/receptionist area/filing room while I answered the standard questions.
As I waited for the doctor, a small boy went in through the partition with his father. He couldn’t have been older than 4 years old but I distinctly heard the word “abscess” and wondered how a kid without any of his adult teeth could already have an infected tooth.
The doctor prescribed a pain medication and told them to have the tooth removed and come back the next week. (I could overhear the conversation from where I sat). The woman who would be seen after me was following up because her tooth had also been removed; she was having pain and wanted the doctor to take a look.
The dentist seemed overworked and she had a chronic hunch in her back. Without a dental assistant to help her take x-rays and perform routine cleanings, she tried to work as quickly as possible.
I left with a prescription for mouthwash and an appointment for a cleaning the next week. Disclaimer: I am no exemplar of perfect dental health. My teeth have enough fillings to remind me everyday of my poor brushing habits as a child. However, common sense eventually came knocking and I developed healthy preventative habits.
In the broader sense of healthcare, preventative medicine gets pushed to the back burner to make room for heart disease, cancer, and diabetes treatments (3 of the leading causes of death among African-Americans, according to the CDC). Once you tie in the host of mental issues that plague the community (considering the culture of embarrassment/shaming when discussing depression), it goes without saying that preventative care could go a long way in helping people live longer, healthier lives.
In theory, and from one’s privileged background/perspective, that sounds easy. Get people to healthcare providers who will help them make healthy changes. 3 major things that make this so much more difficult are:
Without going into my rant on why the United States’s whole 
healthcare system is a**backwards, let’s just say that America could learn a few things from other countries when it comes to taking care of its citizens. If you are unemployed, you are much less likely to have access to affordable healthcare (note: the Emergency Room does not count).
You don’t know what you don’t know until you know it. This could be applied to a slew of different situations: job opportunities, health care, college/financial aid resources, etc. This is what makes it nearly impossible for communities to become informed on things that can make their lives exponentially better. Sure, common sense tells us that eating healthy and exercising is good for us. But what does healthy eating look like? “Where do I find fresh fruits and vegetables? (link to my previous post about this exact issue) And how in the world can I find time to exercise when I work during the day and take care of my kids at night?”
Essentially, without the resources to attack these issues, some people feel helpless. In terms of healthcare, many uninsured Americans consider the ER to be their insurance. If they don’t feel sick, why should they go to the doctor (if they even have time)? There is no real feeling of urgency with preventative care which may explain why many people don’t see it’s significance.
I grew up going to the dentist every 6 months. This habit has faltered a bit, but my mother still reminds me to get a cleaning every so often. For children who either don’t have a consistent family structure, or don’t have access to healthcare (see above), these habits don’t come as easily. If you only attend the dentist for an infected tooth, or see the doctor for a broken arm, these habits develop in adulthood.
The recent federal mandates to our health care system have been a welcome change. Especially when you consider the fact that “new estimates from RAND suggest that 3.8 million African Americans who would otherwise be uninsured will gain coverage by 2016 through the expansion of Medicaid eligibility and the creation of Affordable Insurance Exchanges” (aspre.hhc.gov) To put this number into perspective, 44 million Americans identified as African-American in 2012 (about 14%). Of that number, 9 million are uninsured (about 20 percent).
That means the Affordable Care Act can cut the number of uninsured African-Americans by 1/3 by 2016!
As for the lack of access to information and the generational trends seen in most poor neighborhoods, there isn’t 1 strategy that could solve these issues. These are symptoms of a much larger problem that can’t be solved with one piece of legislation. How can we get information out to people who need it the most without imposing significant cultural barriers on communities?
I’m interested to hear your thoughts/feelings/responses to this issue.
What types of strategies can be implemented in order to promote the significance of preventative medicine?
I can’t reach a grocery store within walking distance in Brownsville and I have to commute further into Brooklyn to reach a store with fresh fruits and vegetables. The nearest restaurants consist of questionable Chinese food and fried chicken. For someone with a regular income and access to public transportation, this is only a minor inconvenience. For many of the residents of Brownsville, including the students whom I teach, it’s almost an inescapable life sentence.
From people who are very unfamiliar with food inequality, I’ve heard things such as, why don’t they just eat healthy food? There are many things wrong with this assumption, primarily being:
1. It completely ignores the fact that poverty is a cycle that takes generations to break.
2. Money, time, and access are all factors that contribute to food inequality.
3. Certain habits can be tough to break, even when money and access to food is no longer a factor.
Part of the disparity between wealthy and impoverished neighborhoods is the lack of access to fresh fruits and vegetables. On every corner of Brownsville, you’ll find a deli/cornerstore. These stores have tons of cheap junk food that require no preparation. They’re affordable, easy, and quick. I have to walk about 30 minutes to reach the nearest local grocery store in the neighborhood (it is not directly accessible by bus or train from my apartment). Sure, I can take the train to Target or Trader Joe’s in Downtown Brooklyn. But what about my neighbors who live on fixed incomes and may not be able to afford the food items at these locations? Or even afford the frequent subway fare?
Another factor is time. If I were working a minimum wage job for long hours everyday (and had to commute to and from this job), it might be difficult to prepare a fresh meal every night for my family. Picking up fast food at the nearest restaurant for my family would be much more manageable. It’s not the healthiest choice, but to some families it seems like the only choice, also because of….
Believe it or not, it can be quite expensive to feed a large family healthy meals each day. Families on fixed or low incomes often scrape by each month, so the quickest and cheapest option is often their first choice. Delis and cornerstores usually only carry fresh items like milk and juice, most likely because it’s expensive to keep fresh produce in stock on a regular basis.
These issues go overlooked when discussing income equality in the U.S. Sometimes it’s difficult for people who were raised in upper class backgrounds to understand why being poor is actually very expensive.
It hardly seems like only 2 months have passed since I was leaving Germany after my fantastic year abroad. Now I’m (more or less) settled into my apartment and I meet my 5th graders at Achievement First Brownsville Middle School tomorrow!
(Completely new to my story? Check out my other blog to see what I’ve been up to for the past year!)
For now, here’s a quick update on my transition process thus far in Brooklyn:
Rode an empty subway car in the middle of the day (a rare occurrence)
One stop of pure bliss
Attended a water gun fight in Central Park 
Ate Thai food, soul food, Indian food, great pizza…
Went to the beach and swam in the Atlantic Ocean
My bestie!
Found and moved into an apartment within walking distance of my job
Rented a U-haul to buy furniture at IKEA and assembled said furniture by myself
4 solid hours of solo work
Made my first solo trip to the laundromat and didn’t destroy my clothes
Drove to Philadelphia by myself for the first time
Stayed overnight in Connecticut for a staff retreat
My 5th grade homeroom!
Spent a month in teacher training preparing for my first day of school
Experienced my first (of many) 12 hour days at work
Saw this in my school building and proceeded to celebrate (HU!)
So of course I had to represent in my apartment…
I love my HBCU ❤
I had so much support and felt so much love during this transition process. Shout out to my peeps in Germany that celebrated my “arrival,” my family that looked out for my emotional well-being, and the lovely ladies who ensured I wasn’t homeless in Brooklyn!
I hope to tackle some tougher issues in this blog, just bear with me 🙂
Musings of a Burgeoning Brooklynite 