The Causes of Racism and Misogyny in American Medicine

The shocking death of Kira Johnston highlights the pervasive racism in American medicine.
After a routine c-section, she began to lose alarming amounts of blood. Her husband,
Charles, immediately notified the nearest official, but she received treatment ten hours
after his request. However, in the context of the US medical field, the cause for the racist
and misogynistic attitude becomes clearer. While black Americans comprise 13% of the
population , and women make up 51% of the population, 6% of American physicians are
black and 33% are female. The racist and misogynistic attitude in American medicine is
a result of a lack of female and black medical professionals.

As we have discussed in class, social implications have steered women away from
professions in the maths and sciences. Generally, individuals view them to be less
assertive, knowledgeable, and competent, despite receiving more education on average. 

The absence of black Americans in medicine can also be attributed to social stigmas.
As Mr. Carson noted, black people, particularly men, are regarded as inherently
superior athletes and inferior scholars in relation to white men. As a result of centuries
of such misconceptions, many young black men see athletics as the only feasible way
to escape socio-economic oppression. In a 2017 Verizon advert which tried to direct
young people towards the maths and sciences, LeBron James boldly stated “We don’t
need another LeBron” (after the commercial showed a clip of a black boy saying that
he wanted to become a basketball player). In the words of NBA shooting guard JJ
Redick when he discussed guarding all-star Jimmy Butler in practice, “I guarded
[Butler] on the block and he later told me that he was mad because the Sixers had
put a white guy on him.” 

Unfortunately, bigotry will continue to exist in the American medical field until
more women and black Americans disseminate into the industry. However, more
women and black Americans are finally choosing to pursue professions in medicine,
which will eventually end the unjust treatment of women and black Americans.