Reflections of a Liberation Doc

**Triggers - Gun Violence** This week is National Public Health Week (April 2-8, 2018) with this focus: "Everyone deserves to live a long and healthy life in a safe environment." It's also National Minority Health Month (April 2018), and while the current administration chooses to focus on "a time to learn more about the health status of racial and ethnic minority populations in the U.S. " (whatever), my friend/colleague/sis Dr. J. Nadine Gracia, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health and  Director of the Office of Minority Health from 2011 - 2017,  chose to focus in 2016 on what many of us who work intentionally in health equity focus on: "Accelerating Health Equity for the Nation, will promote the extraordinary efforts underway by HHS and the Obama Administration to reduce disparities, advance equity, and strengthen the health and well-being of all Americans." Whatever to the term "minority,” ( but that's another blog.)

One of my favorite recent projects! In 2017, Faith Bynoe, M Div and I in partnership with the IM Foundation and NYC Center for Health Equity facilitated "Healing Circles" in Brooklyn.  In addition to the ones listed below at Interfaith Medical Center and the Bishop Orris G Walker, Jr. Healthcare Center, we facilitated circles in local NYCHA Housing and the Brownsville Neighborhood Health Action Center.  We look forward to continuing and expanding! FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 16, 2017 Contact: Alina Agusti (212) 725-2378 Interfaith Medical Center Brings Healing Therapy to Brooklyn Residents New York, NY -  While holistic healing methods are not exclusively tied to any one culture, it is true that medically underserved areas have less access to healers trained in traditional healing techniques such as yoga, mindful meditation, and reiki. However, on June 15th from 12:30-1:30 PM and June 14th from 12-1 PM, Interfaith Medical Center (1545 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn, NY 1121

On February 7, 2018, the L.A.Times published an Op-ed by a doctoral candidate entitled "Why do poor Americans eat so unhealthfully? Because junk food Is the only indulgence they can afford." There are SO many dog whistles in this article -- I started to put pen to paper on the harm that this type of work has done/can do. As I was musing, stories started breaking regarding 45's proposal in his 2019 budget for "America's Harvest Box." - a program to give poor people a box of ( “shelf stable,” i.e., canned and/or processed) food in lieu of a part of their SNAP benefits. And there you have it. When a society is built on the myth/concept that poor people or Black people or Indigenous people, or any marginalized people are of lesser value than others, institutions governed by those who benefit from this inequality will perpetuate those myths/concepts that maintain the inequity that keeps a few empowered and many marginalized. How are these con