Margaret Crosby-Arnold - April 15, 2020

Margaret Crosby-Arnold, PhD, "Lest we slip from tragedy to accidental genocide: The danger of longterm collateral damage in how we message and respond to ‘disparate’ death in the COVID-19 pandemic"

This contribution will offer participants a broader understanding of what constitutes genocide in its subtler forms and highlight how we need to guard against slipping into same in the COVID19 and future pandemics as it relates to ‘disparities’ in death. It will suggest a need for closer collaboration between physical scientist and scholars of the humanities and social sciences so that the response and messaging can be informed by a depth of historical and cultural knowledge that will foster trust instead of increasing distrust of the medical and scientific professions amongst communities of color. While contemporary doctors and physical scientists may have forgotten past association with genocide and the construction of essentialized disparities around the construct of ‘race,’ unfortunately the legacy of such lives on in the form of distrust in communities that suffered under same. The present response to COVID19 may run the risk of aggravating distrust and, therefore, inhibit the ability to maximize mitigation this and other deadly viruses.

Summary provided by presenter.