Three months into the COVID-19 era, life in the United States actually manages to get worse. Whitney leads this raw and intimate conversation with Sarah about how George Floyd’s murder and the subsequent protests and police response have profoundly shaken her. She discusses the current attention on police brutality against Black people (#BlackLivesMatter) in the context of COVID-19 health disparities. And she draws connections among recent events, the longer history of systemic racism in the U.S., and her intimate life as a mother, wife, and member of a large extended Black family.* Whitney also reflects on how this moment is changing her perspectives on how to move forward as a Black scholar studying racial equity in an overwhelmingly White environment. For all of you who are feeling grief and outrage, and for all of you who want to be a better source of support for those who are grieving and outraged -- this episode is dedicated to you.

*A note: Whitney’s relative who was home with COVID-19 is doing well and seems fully recovered. The relative’s husband was discharged from the hospital and is also doing well. Another older relative of theirs remains hospitalized.

Related readings and links:

Rena episodes: S108: Rena and S312: Rena, Part 2

The study Whitney mentioned about NIH funding by race and topic: https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/5/10/eaaw7238

The study Whitney mentioned on the discounting of innovation by demographically underrepresented students:https://www.pnas.org/content/117/17/9284.short?casa_token=vK3Mha8zXXQAAAAA:7SvglLpkf1jJ5HCUth4U5Nnod07fm26s1tCZ9mftqNYbZkmp33sGcc26qLVJlJwBIeRU6xa_8N6P“By analyzing data from nearly all US PhD recipients and their dissertations across three decades, this paper finds demographically underrepresented students innovate at higher rates than majority students, but their novel contributions are discounted and less likely to earn them academic positions. The discounting of minorities’ innovations may partly explain their underrepresentation in influential positions of academia.”

“How to more safely protest in a pandemic”: COVID-19 harm reduction tips from Voxhttps://www.vox.com/2020/5/31/21276082/what-to-bring-to-a-protest-coronavirus-covid-19-risk-safety

A full transcript of the episode can be found here.

Recorded: June 3, 2020Twitter: https://twitter.com/AcaDamesPodcastE-mail: [email protected] Voicemail #: (919) 666-7301(Voice memos can also be emailed if you would like!)Creative Director: Mara BuchbinderMusic by: Grace Mesa — PremiumBeat.com Production, editing, and admin by Meryem OkArtwork by Melissa Hudgens at Leafy Greens Designs