This is the badge where I choose to display a Black Lives Matter pin. I wear this pin to work each day because I believe that Black Lives Matter is a message that is essential for all Americans to see and hear on a daily basis. I’ve distributed almost a hundred of these pins to my co-workers and every month I order more. It was brought to my attention that my employer has received anonymous complaints about seeing medical staff wearing these pins, so I wanted to clarify why I as a doctor make the choice to wear this pin.
Black Lives Matter became a prominent slogan during nationwide protests against police violence. According to the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics, between 2003 and 2009 4,813 Americans died at the hands of police. Black people are disproportionately the victims of these police homicides, accounting for 32% of these deaths despite constituting only 12.6% of the population.
In this context, #BlackLivesMatter was used to remind the White American public that Tamir Rice, Sandra Bland, Freddie Gray, and Walter Scott are precious souls to be grieved, not mere statistics. However, the slogan gained a life of its own as a push back against the myriad ways in which Black life is denigrated in our country. It is a pinprick to the conscience meant to call attention to the cynicism with which too many of us receive news of the deaths of our Black neighbors.
This is a message that we healthcare professionals need to hear as we are all too often oblivious or callous to the enormous health disparities that exist between Black and White people in this country. A 2013 CDC report showed that rate of deaths from heart disease and stroke is 20% greater for Black people than White. That’s 6,942 deaths every year that could be prevented if racial inequality was addressed. The same report showed that the infant death rate is 130% greater for Black children than White. That’s 4,576 Black babies that don’t live to see their first birthdays because of racial disparity.
When I say that racism kills, I am speaking to these thousands of deaths that occur every year because of the racial injustice that permeates our nation. When I wear that pin, it’s because the deaths of four thousand Black babies every year is a tragedy and an injustice and it matters.
As a profession that is committed to preserving health and prolonging life, we have a duty to push back against all things that threaten the well-being of our patients. That is why I wear this pin and will continue to do so.
If you wish to take a stand in your workplace as well, I encourage you to order your own Black Lives Matter pin here: http://www.radicaldreams.net/product/black-lives-matter-lapel-pin
EDIT 5/16/17: An earlier version of this post stated that “4,813 Americans died at the hands of police every year.” This has been corrected to state “between 2003 and 2009 4,813 Americans died at the hands of police.”
Toward Health 