Reply To: From Separate to Equal and The 1619 Project

[Martin_Searcy]

#764

1A) After reviewing the video “Separate to Equal” I felt a sense of pride in my culture and my people. From viewing how my ancestors in the past were able to persevere through the economic hardships in the medical community and seeing how they were able to make do with what they had, this made me feel very proud to know that I carry on this legacy of uplifting and providing healthcare to my community and the other communities around it. After viewing the video I also felt a bit of sorrow from seeing the tragedies and deaths that came from the black hospitals because they did not have the right resources, nor the funding to be successful. Lastly, I felt inspired and thankful because seeing these black doctors like Dr. Unthank and Dr. Perry fight for their own hospitals and their own rights to practice and overcoming their obstacles, this shows that they have opened many doors for me and my fellow African American colleagues. This inspires me to overcome any of my endeavors and be the best doctor I can be.
1B) In the documentary the languages and attitudes that stood out to me were erudite, malignant, optimistic, and critical. The criticalness and maliciousness stood out to me because many times through history, there would be caucasian people trying to sabotage black people’s efforts to move forward and advance themselves. For example, this was shown when Dr. Jabez Jackson would not allow the African American doctors to serve on the staff at General #2 Hospital or when the tunnel was made between the two hospitals, taking resources from General Hospital #2. Eruditeness stood out to me because from watching the documentary, I was able to tell that these African American doctors were well educated and very intelligent men, nevertheless, they were still unable to have the opportunities of others because of the color of their skin. Lastly, optimism stood out because the black doctors and nurses were able to find a way to overcome their obstacles
2A) After reading the magazine I felt a feeling of sadness, confusion, irritation, and frustration. I felt these because it was disheartening seeing these tragedies about my ancestors that have gone on in the past. It was sad to see how slavery is linked to many things in the world today. It was confusing to see the hypocrisy of the US in making laws for freedom and independence for everyone, except for people of color. Lastly, it was irritating and frustrating to learn more about how the US was made by black people in every way, and yet we still to this day have not been able to reap the benefits of our ancestor’s labor.
2B) In this magazine the languages and attitudes that stood out to me were disingenuous and gloomy. The disingenuousness of the magazine stood out to me because the US was not sincere, did not care, and do not care to this day about African Americans. In addition, the gloom stood out because the tragedies were ultimately very sad and dark and the magazine highlighted how African Americans were and are rejected from society.