African Americans

The Importance of Academic Spaces for Developing Black Excellence

The pursuit of freedom and a better life for Black and African Americans has been wrapped up in our access to educational opportunities since arriving on the shores of this land over 400 years ago.  I vividly recall my mother demanding that my four siblings and I complete high school and go on to college. My mother knew that an education would open doors of opportunity and, ultimately, a better life. Neither of my parents attended college prior to marriage and children, but attending college was not an unfamiliar concept in my home. My two oldest siblings completed trade schools

Racial Bias Uncovered in Kidney Transplantation System: Thousands of Black Patients Prioritized After Years of Waiting

“Not everyone approaches medicine with a health equity lens. Many clinicians are not aware of existing disparities — how Black patients do not get referred to nephrology as early as white patients and do not have sufficient access to transplant ,” said Dr. Nwamaka Eneanya, an assistant professor at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Health System. “In medicine, the tendency is to say, ‘This is what a study showed, so this is what we should do,’ focusing on biomarkers and statistical tests without examining issues of ethics or health equity.”

OneLegacy’s Wellness Event Inspires South L.A. Participants

Hundreds of local residents visited the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza on March 2, to attend OneLegacy’s Connecting the Dots: Hip Hop & Health Community Event and Panel. This inaugural event hosted by the local organ procurement organization offered a variety of free services including free A1C and high cholesterol health screenings from OneLegacy’s OPO/HBCU Coalition partner, Charles Drew Medical School, as well as free oral hygiene services from Chinatown Service Center. The event also included free haircuts, manicures, yoga and wellness sessions, COVID-19 tests, and fresh produce, followed by a health panel. The panel was moderated by producer, artepreneur, and HBCU graduate Maleena Lawrence

Advocates Want More Black Californians Involved in State’s Transition to EVs

When Los Angeles hosted its annual car show a little over a month ago at the LA Convention Center, it not only showcased the latest in automotive technology, but the event also transformed into a policy forum on clean energy, previewing what lies ahead for California’s electric vehicle (EV) future. Battery-powered cars took center stage. They accounted for the majority of the over 1000 vehicles on display, ranging from cars and trucks to motorcycles, recreational vehicles, and semi-trucks. For Black and other minority advocates in attendance, several concerns emerged. Among them were the impact of the transition to zero emissions

DermKing Humanity Foundation Provides Skincare Solutions for Underserved Angelenos

 After a decade of being the dermatology expert to many of Hollywood’s elite including Academy Award-nominated actress Angela Bassett, Emmy Award-winning actress Niecy Nash, and boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, Doctor of Medical Science and Health Science, Landon McCarroll who is also a Physician Associate (PA), is turning his attention towards helping the youth and underserved populations in the inner city by providing free medical care through his DermKing Humanity Foundation.

Black Californians hope state reparations don’t become another broken promise

San Francisco resident Pia Harris hopes for reparations in her lifetime. But the nonprofit program director is not confident that California lawmakers will turn the recommendations of a first-in-the-nation task force into concrete legislation given pushback from opponents who say slavery was a thing of the past.