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  • Black History Month

Black History Month

2023 Features

In an effort to acknowledge the diversity of our community, the Office of Equity and Inclusion launched a celebratory initiative to promote sharing, awareness, and learning. Here, we recognize and celebrate our faculty and staff by hearing their stories and experiences.

 

Zoom Backgrounds

Each Affinity Month, we will unveil new Zoom backgrounds for use by affinity group members and allies during their respective affinity month. Zoom backgrounds for Black History Month are available to download from Sharepoint with the link below.

Tracey Henry Department of Medicine

"I give a voice to the voiceless..."

I am here because of the courageous Black physician trailblazers, leaders and advocates that came before me. I realized early on in my career that I have an affinity for speaking out for those who are unable to speak up for themselves. As an advocate for my patients and profession, I give a voice to the voiceless and am able to make widespread impactful change not just for my individual patients who walk through my clinic doors but for all patients. My advocacy work has resulted in a number of successful initiatives and policies both locally and nationally, that have positively impacted historically marginalized and minoritized groups.

Tracey's Photo

My role as a mentor and sowing seeds into the next generation of physicians to become diverse, equitable and inclusive physician advocates and leaders inspires me. But most importantly my sister who died while awaiting a kidney transplant, cemented my drive to advance. I witnessed the inequities in her healthcare firsthand and it is her life and legacy that propels me forward in my career where my ultimate goal is to ensure everyone has equitable access to quality affordable healthcare.  

Paying it forward, my role as a clinician educator allows me to Engage, Mentor, Prepare, Advocate, Cultivate and Teach (EMPACT) the next generation of physicians to become effective inclusive leaders and advocates which inspire me. Learn more about EMPACT

Lakecia Crawford Department of Hematology/Medical Oncology

"Giving up was not an option."

My journey started because I didn’t want to become a statistic. My mother instilled in us how important getting an education was. My grandmother earned a full scholarship to become a dentist. She said black women back then didn’t get an education. They got married and started a family. My mother didn’t want this for us. She had 3 children she wanted to see succeed.

Photo of Lakecia Crawford

We were all headed down the wrong path. My brother died at 18 years of age due to gun violence and my sister and I started having children at a young age. Life was a struggle for me trying to make ends meet. I decided to go to school to become a medical assistant. I feel deeply in love with the medical field and wanted to pursue it further. I enrolled in college to become a nurse.

My journey was halted due to a brain tumor. I almost lost my life at this time. Giving up was not an option. The next year I changed my major and re-enrolled in college. I completed my last assignment towards my Bachelor’s degree while in the hospital. I just given birth to my daughter. A year later I earned my Master’s degree.  
My journey included: a birth, deaths, illnesses, surviving domestic violence, a divorce, and a marriage. I made it through it all. I am proud to say that I am now a PhD student.

Veronica Smith Department of Medicine

"My upbringing has shaped how I care..." 

My experiences as a Liberian American woman in healthcare have provided me with a unique perspective in my profession. Liberia, a West African nation founded by formerly enslaved Black Americans, has a culture that places high value on unity, respect, family, religion, education, and love for others.

Flag pin on map of Liberia

Growing up, I watched my parents overcome many hardships having left their country in the midst of civil unrest. Their hard work and strength to rebuild after their lives were upended by conflict, taught me resilience and the importance of collaboration. 

I have utilized these tools while working in both the private and public sectors and have had the privilege of caring for patients across the lifespan. My upbringing has shaped how I’ve cared for some of the most vulnerable populations and treated patients with life-altering diagnoses taking special care to provide a culturally sensitive and empathetic approach so that patients feel valued and heard.

My hope is to be a welcoming face to people from all backgrounds that I encounter in research. I encourage my patients to feel empowered to take ownership of their healthcare journey just as my ancestors took ownership of their rights to freedom.

Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing Poem recited by African American Women's Collective

In 1900, NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson wrote a poem titled Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing and it was quickly stylized and performed as a hymn. The NAACP would go on to adopt the hymn as the "Black National Anthem" in 1917, gaining more prominence during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Most recently, Sheryl Lee Ralph made history, performing it for the first time on the field before the Super Bowl. 

Members of the African American Women's Collaborative created a video reciting the poem. Click the video link below to view this powerful piece.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
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