Reply To: From Separate to Equal and The 1619 Project

[Whitney_Williams]

#757

Separate to Equal Response

After watching the “From Separate to Equal: The Creation of the Truman Medical Center,” I felt energized and inspired. I began to understand the complexities of the relationship between the healthcare system and the African American community. While white patients were given adequate care at hospitals, black patients were overlooked and discriminated against. Furthermore, African Americans were weary of a system that abused African Americans for years in scientific experiments like Tuskegee. I was especially surprised to learn about the death of W.E.B DuBois’ son solely because of his physical appearance, an unfortunate reality for millions of African Americans at the time. However, I was equally encouraged by the African American communities’ response to this reality through the creation of schools and hospitals. Revolutionaries like Dr.Thomas Unthank took on the struggle of equality with bravery and ingenuity, assessing both the dire healthcare situation of African Americans in Kansas City and seeking solutions. One of Unthanks’ solutions, The John Lange Hospital, became the first hospital for African Americans in Kansas City, Missouri. Another important trailblazer Dr. Edward Perry fought great hardship to attend the Medical School of Chicago, where he took meticulous notes on surgeries and classes. He sacrificed his safety to share the important medical information he learned with the African American community. Without the courage and perseverance of Dr. Thomas Unthank and Dr.Edward Perry, countless African American lives would have been lost. I was also intrigued to learn the first integrated hospital, Queen of the World Hospital was located in Kansas City. Despite the city’s history of segregation and discrimination, the hospital was able to thrive for a short time. I found this compromising attitude as fascinating as Kansas Citys’ healthcare system evolved from one fraught with discrimination and segregation to one capable of having the nation’s first integrated hospital. In conclusion, “From Separate to Equal: The Creation of the Truman Medical Center” offers a unique perspective on African Americans’ fight for equal healthcare and the historical complexities of the system itself.