>>> AND NOW, AS WE SEE THE U.S. MAY BE TRYING TO PUSH THE BOUNDARIES IN SPACE TRAVEL, BUT WHEN IT COMES TO THE BASICS, LIKE HAVING RACIAL EQUALITY IN HEALTH CARE, FOR INSTANCE, IT'S LAGGING BEHIND.

OUR NEXT GUEST, DR. UCHE BLACKSTOCK, SAYS THAT BLACK PHYSICIANS ONLY MAKE UP OVER 5% OF DOCTORS ACROSS THE NATION, AND THE REPORT THAT CAME OUT IN 1910, FORCING FIVE OUT OF SEVEN BLACK MEDICAL SCHOOLS TO CLOSE, IS LARGELY TO BLAME.

SHE DETAILS ALL OF THIS IN HER NEW BOOK.

"LEGACY: A BLACK PHYSICIAN RECONS WITH RACISM IN MEDICINE."

AND SHE'S JOINING MICHEL MARTIN ON BLACK HISTORY MONTH TO TALK ABOUT RACIAL BARRIERS IN THE INDUSTRY.

>> THANK YOU, CHRISTIANE.

DR. UCHE BLACKSTOCK, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.

>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.

>> SO, DR. BLACKSTOCK, YOU ARE ACTUALLY ONE OF THREE DR. BLACKSTOCKS, AND YOU AND YOUR SISTER, TWIN SISTER, WERE THE FIRST LEGACIES FROM BOTH HARVARD UNDERGRAD AND HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL, WHERE YOU MOM WENT.

TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR MOM, WHY DID SHE WANT TO BE A DOCTOR?

>> WE REFER TO HER AS THE ORIGINAL DR. BLACKSTOCK, AND SHE WAS -- SHE GREW UP IN VERY DIFFERENT CIRCUMSTANCES THAN MY SISTER AND ME.

SHE GREW UP HERE IN CENTRAL BROOKLYN, IN NEW YORK, IN POVERTY.

HER FAMILY WAS ON PUBLIC ASSISTANCE, TO A SINGLE MOM.

SHE HAD FIVE OTHER SIBLINGS, AND THEY MOVED OFTEN, CHANGED SCHOOLS OFTEN, LIFE WAS REALLY QUITE DIFFICULT FOR HER, BUT MY MOM HAD VERY STRONG WORK ETHIC, SHE HAD A STRONG CURIOSITY FOR SCIENCE, AND WHEN SHE WAS IN -- SHE BECAME THE FIRST PERSON IN HER FAMILY TO GRADUATE FROM COLLEGE.

AND IN COLLEGE, SHE ACTUALLY HAD A CHEMISTRY PROFESS SORE, A BLACK MAN, WHO SAW HER SPARK, WHO SAW HER POTENTIAL, AND SAID, I THINK YOU SHOULD APPLY TO MEDICAL SCHOOL.

AND SHE ENDED UP APPLYING TO ALL OF HER MEDICAL SCHOOLS AND GOT INTO EVERY SINGLE ONE AND WENT TO HARVARD MED SCHOOL, WHERE SHE OBVIOUSLY FELT LIKE A FISH OUT OF WATER, BUT SHE FOUND HER PEOPLE THERE.

AND AFTER SHE GRADUATED, SHE ENDED UP COMING BACK TO NOT ONLY NEW YORK CITY, BUT SHE ENDED UP PRACTICING IN THE SAME NEIGHBORHOOD THAT SHE GREW UP IN, YOU KNOW, CARING FOR HER FRIENDS AND HER NEIGHBORS, AND SO, FOR MY SISTER AND ME, JUST SORT OF, YOU KNOW, SEEING THAT, KNOWING HER STORY, IT MADE A HUGE IMPACT ON US IN TERMS OF WHAT WE WANTED TO DO, YOU KNOW, WITH OUR OWN CAREER, AND OBVIOUSLY BEING A PHYSICIAN, THERE WAS NO DOUBT THAT WE WERE GOING TO DO THE SAME.

>> THE PIECE THAT YOU WROTE FOR "THE WASHINGTON POST" AND YOUR BOOK, "LEGACY," WHICH IS KIND OF A MARVELOUS STORY OF FAMILY, AS WELL AS ABOUT HISTORY OF BLACK AMERICANS IN MEDICINE, BUT WHAT -- WHAT DID SHE LIKE ABOUT BEING A PHYSICIAN?

AND WHY WAS SHE SO GOOD AT IT?

>> SHE THOUGHT ABOUT, SORT OF, EVERY ASPECT OF WHAT HER PATIENTS' LIVES WERE.

I ALWAYS SAY, YOU KNOW, THINKING ABOUT THE SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CONTEXT IN WHICH HER PATIENTS LIVED.

SO, NOT ONLY DID SHE REALIZE SHE WAS IN THE ROOM WITH HER PATIENT, BUT SHE ALSO RECOGNIZED THAT MORE WHOLISTICALLY, SHE WAS IN THE ROOM WITH THEIR FAMILY, THEIR FRIENDS, WHERE THEY WORKED.

SHE HAD A VERY WHOLISTIC UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT MAKES PEOPLE HEALTHY.

NOW, WE TALK ABOUT HEALTH EQUITY, RIGHT, AND THAT'S A MORE -- A NEWER EXPRESSION, BUT I FEEL LIKE MY MOTHER WAS PROVIDING EQUITABLE CARE TO HER PATIENTS, YOU KNOW, IN THE '80s AND '90s WHEN WE DIDN'T HAVE THOSE TERMS.

>> YOUR BOOK ARRIVES AT AN INTERESTING MOMENT, WHERE PEOPLE ARE JUST STARTING TO ACKNOWLEDGE SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN TRUE ALL ALONG, WHICH IS THAT AFRICAN AMERICANS, YOU KNOW, BLACK PEOPLE, IN THE UNITED STATES, HAVE POORER OUTCOMES, POORER HEALTH OUTCOMES.

THE MATERNAL MORTALITY RATE IS MANY TIMES THAT OF WHITE PEOPLE, WHITE PEOPLE WHO GET PREGNANT.

PEOPLE WHO ARE SIMILARLY IT IS WAITED IN TERMS OF INCOME AND EDUCATION, YOU KNOW, ALL THOSE CLASSIC INDICATORS, THE HEALTH OUTCOMES ARE STILL POORER.

SO, THE SHORT QUESTION FOR YOU, DR. BLACKSTOCK, IS, WHY IS THAT?

>> SO, THERE'S SEVERAL DIFFERENT REASONS FOR THAT, ALL RELATED TO INTERPERSONAL AND SYSTEMIC RACISM, BUT ONE THING THAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE IS THAT WE HAVE SEEN THIS IN THE DATA, WE'VE HEARD IT ANECDOTALLY, THAT WHEN WE GO TO SEEK CARE FROM HEALTH PROFESSIONALS, BLACK PEOPLE, WE ARE OFTEN -- OUR CONCERNS ARE DISMISSED, IGNORED, OR MINIMIZED, AND WE HAVE SEEN THAT LEAD TO VERY, VERY HORRIFIC CONSEQUENCES, YOU KNOW, MISDIAGNOSIS, DELAYED DIAGNOSIS, HARM, AND EVEN DEATH.

SO, THERE IS THAT INTERACTION WITH HEALTH PROFESSIONALS, BUT THEN THERE'S ALSO WHAT HAPPENS, YOU KNOW, A WEATHERING PROCESS.

THERE IS A PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCHER WHO COINED THAT TERM, WEATHERING, AND THIS WEATHERING PROCESS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU DEAL WITH A CHRONIC STRESS OF LIVING WITH EVERYDAY RACISM, REGARDLESS OF YOUR ECONOMIC STATUS, AND THAT CAUSES A WEAR AND TEAR ON OUR BODIES THAT PREMATURELY AGES US AND MAKES US SUSCEPTIBLE TO DEVELOPING CHRONIC DISEASES OR DYING EARLY.

BLACK PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY, WE HAVE THE LOWEST LIFE EXPECTANCY, AND SO, THERE ARE -- THESE ARE THE REASONS FOR THAT.

WE REALLY HAVE TO NAME RACISM WHEN WE'RE THINKING ABOUT, WHAT ARE THE INTERVENTIONS AND SOLUTIONS?

>> WHAT MADE YOU THINK OF THIS?

WHAT MADE YOU KIND OF CONNECT ALL THESE DOTS?

>> ONE THING THAT, YOU KNOW, I WRITE ABOUT IN MY BOOK IS FOR ME, IT WAS A JOURNEY, BECAUSE MANY OF THESE, YOU KNOW, I TALK A LOT ABOUT THE HISTORY OF RACISM IN MEDICINE IN THE BOOK, I TALK ABOUT HOW THE FATHER OF GYNECOLOGY EXPERIMENTED ON SLAVED BLACK WOMEN, MADE THESE DISCOVERIES AND DID SO IN A HORRIFIC WAY, NOT MAINTAINING CONSENT, BECAUSE THESE PEOPLE WERE ENSLAVED, AND PERFORMING PAINFUL SURGERIES.

I TALK ABOUT THAT, BECAUSE I NEVER LEARNED THAT IN MEDICAL SCHOOL.

I DIDN'T LEARN THAT IN MY RESIDENCY.

THERE WERE SO MANY THINGS THAT I LEARNED AS A PRACTICING PHYSICIAN, AND I GRIEVED NOT HAVING LEARNED THAT, WHEN I WAS IN MEDICAL SCHOOL, AND REALLY MAKING SURE THAT OUR FUTURE GENERATIONS ARE EDUCATED ABOUT THAT, SO WE UNDERSTAND WHY WE ARE HERE TODAY.

YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THESE MYTHS ABOUT BLACK PEOPLE BEING BIOLOGICALLY DIFFERENT ARE DEEPLY ROOTED IN SLAVERY.

IN JIM CROW.

AND SO, WE KNOW THAT THAT IMPACTS HOW HEALTH PROFESSIONALS CARE FOR PEOPLE, BECAUSE THOSE MYTHS GET PER PECH RATED, UNFORTUNATELY, EVEN IN OUR MEDICAL EDUCATION.

>> READING FROM YOUR BOOK, YOU -- THE NUMBER OF BLACK PHYSICIANS IN THIS COUNTRY REMAINS STUBBORNLY LOW, WITH ONLY 5.4% OF ALL U.S. PHYSICIANS IDENTIFYING AS BLACK.

2.6% AS BLACK MEN, AND 2.8% AS BLACK WOMEN, ALTHOUGH BLACK PEOPLE MAKE UP 13% OF THE POPULATION.

THERE IS ACTUALLY A SMALLER PERCENTAGE OF BLACK MALE PHYSICIANS NOW THAN THERE WAS IN 1940, WHEN BLACK MEN MADE UP 2.7% OF BLACK PHYSICIANS.

YOU KNOW, I'M SURE THAT SOME PEOPLE LISTENING TO THIS SAY, WELL, THAT'S JUST TOO BAD, THAT BLACK FOLKS JUST DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT PREPARATION, OR THEY DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO THE RIGHT EDUCATION, OR, YOU KNOW, OR JUST NOT -- CAN'T JUST CUT THE MUSTARD.

AND WHAT YOU SAY IN YOUR ESSAY AND IN YOUR BOOK IS, THAT'S NOT TRUE.

IT WAS LIKE A DELIBERATE EFFORT TO KIND OF CUT OFF ACCESS TO MEDICAL EDUCATION.

COULD YOU JUST TALK US THROUGH THAT STORY?

>> SO, I TALK ABOUT THE FLEXNER REPORT, THIS REPORT THAT WAS PUBLISHED IN 1910.

THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, WHICH IS THE OLDEST AND LARGEST ORGANIZATION OF PHYSICIANS AND CARNEGIE MELLON FOUNDATION COMMITTED THE REPORT, AND AN EDUCATION SPECIALIST WENT AROUND TO ASSESS ALL 155 U.S. AND CANADIAN MEDICAL SCHOOLS TO HOLD THEM AGAINST HIGHER STANDARDS OF THE WESTERN EUROPEAN MEDICAL SCHOOLS OR IN THE U.S., JOHNS HOPKINS WHICH WAS THE GOLD STANDARD.

OF COURSE, WE KNOW THAT HISTORICALLY BLACK MEDICAL SCHOOLS DID NOT HAVE THE RESOURCES OR WEALTH THAT PREDOMINANTLY WHITE MEDICAL SCHOOLS HAD, SO, THAT REPORT ACTUALLY LED TO THE CLOSURE OF FIVE OUT OF SEVEN OF THE MISOR THEICALLY BLACK COLLEGES IN 1910, LEAVING BEHIND ONLY HOWARD AND MEHARY.

THERE WAS A STUDY THAT CAME OUT IN 2020 THAT ESTIMATED IF THOSE FIVE MEDICAL SCHOOLS HAD REMAINED OPEN, THEY WOULD HAVE TRAINED BETWEEN 25,000 AND 35,000 PHYSICIANS, AND WE KNOW THEY WOULD PROBABLY MOSTLY WOULD HAVE BEEN BLACK PHYSICIANS, BECAUSE TO THIS DAY, THE TWO SCHOOLS, HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES, THEY STILL PUT OUT THE LARGEST NUMBER OF BLACK MEDICAL STUDENTS.

BUT WHEN I HEARD THAT NUMBER, WHEN I READ THAT NUMBER, I THOUGHT ABOUT -- I CRIED.

I CRIED.

IT WAS VERY EMOTIONAL, BECAUSE I THOUGHT ABOUT THE TREMENDOUS LOSS TO OUR COMMUNITIES, THEY COULD HAVE CARED FOR HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PATIENTS.

THEY COULD HAVE MENTORED BLACK STUDENTS AND TRAINEES, THEY PROBABLY WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE LIKELY TO HAVE DONE RESEARCH AROUND BLACK HEALTH, AND SO, THIS DECISION, OR, THIS REPORT THAT WAS MADE IN 1910 AND HAD THIS DEVASTATING CONSEQUENCE, WE'RE STILL SEEING THE RIPPLE EFFECT OF THAT TODAY IN 2024.

WHICH -- >> WELL, TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT ABRAHAM FLEXNER, THIS PERSON WAS AVOWEDLY RACIST, I MEAN, AVOWEDLY RACIST.

THIS IS WHAT HE SAID ABOUT BLACK STUDENTS.

HE WROTE THAT BLACK STUDENTS SHOULD BE TRAINED IN HYGIENE RATHER THAN SURGERY, QUOTING HERE, AND WERE BEST EMPLOYED AS SAN TARNS THAT COULD HELP PROTECT WHITE PEOPLE FROM COMMON DISEASES SUCH AS TUBERCULOSIS.

THE NEGRO COMMUNICATES THOSE DISEASES TO HIS WHITE NEIGHBORS.

>> ABSOLUTELY.

HE FELT THAT THE ONLY REASON THAT WE SHOULD EVEN BE IN MEDICAL SCHOOLS IS TO PREVENT OUR WHITE PEERS FROM GETTING SICK.

HE DIDN'T FEEL LIKE WE NEEDED TO BE THERE, HE FELT THAT BLACK MEDICAL SCHOOLS WOULD NEVER BE ABLE TO TRAIN COMPETENT BLACK PHYSICIANS.

SO, HE HELD RACIST BELIEFS, WHICH IS SOMETHING THAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND ABOUT THE LEGACY OF RACISM IN MEDICINE.

THERE HAVE BEEN MANY, MANY PHYSICIANS THAT HAVE BEEN REVERED FOR, YOU KNOW, THIS SO-CALLED WONDERFUL WORK THEY'VE DONE, LIKE JAY MARION SIMS, BUT THESE ARE PEOPLE THAT HELD -- WERE ENSLAVERS, OR HELD VERY RACIST BELIEFS.

AND SO, YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE THAT THAT MAY HAVE INFLUENCED THE POLICIES THEY DEVELOPED.

I THINK THAT SPEAKS TO THE FACT THAT WE NEED MEDICAL SCHOOLS TO, YOU KNOW, CURRENTLY TEACH THIS HISTORY TO OUR STUDENTS, BECAUSE OTHERWISE, THEY REALLY ARE GOING TO THINK, AND WE HAVE DATA THAT SHOWS THIS, THEY'RE REALLY GOING TO THINK THAT THEIR BLACK PATIENTS ARE VERY DIFFERENT, OR THEIR BLACK PEERS IN MEDICAL SCHOOL ARE LITERALLY DIFFERENT, DON'T DESERVE TO BE THERE, OR THEIR BLACK PATIENTS ARE JUST INHERENTLY UNHEALTHY, WHEN ACTUALLY, IT'S A RESULT OF PRACTICES AND POLICIES IN THE PAST AND IN THE CURRENT TIME.

>> WHY WOULD IT BE THAT BLACK PATIENTS WOULD GET DIFFERENT CARE FROM BLACK PHYSICIANS OR SUPERIOR CARE OR HAVE SUPERIOR OUTCOMES?

WHY MIGHT THAT BE?

>> PHYSICIANS ARE JUST LIKE AVERAGE CITIZENS.

THEY ARE THE ONES -- YOU KNOW, THEY LIVE LIFE LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE, AND SO, THEY ABSORB CULTURAL MESSAGES, YOU KNOW, THROUGH MEDIA, THROUGH BOOKS, FROM THEIR FAMILY, JUST LIKE ANYBODY ELSE.

AND SO, TO THINK THAT THEY WOULD NOT BE IMPACTED BY ANTI-BLACK MESSAGING THAT IS ALWAYS AROUND US WOULD BE ALMOST SILLY, LIKE, OF COURSE -- OF COURSE THEY PROBABLY HOLD THESE, YOU KNOW, WE CALL THEM UNCONSCIOUS BIAS.

MOST HEALTH PROFESSIONALS WOULD SAY, NO, I WANT TO MAKE SURE I'M GIVING ALL MY PATIENTS THE BEST CARE POSSIBLE, BUT WE ALREADY HAVE THE DATA THAT SHOWS THAT'S NOT THE CASE.

I DON'T THINK THAT THERE SHOULD NECESSARILY ALWAYS BE BLACK PHYSICIANS CARING FOR BLACK PATIENTS, BECAUSE THE NUMBERS DON'T WORK OUT THAT WAY.

WE NEED ALL PHYSICIANS, REGARDLESS OF THEIR RACIAL BACK GROUND, TO BE ABLE TO ADEQUATELY AND COMPETENTLY CARE FOR PLAQUE PATIENTS, BUT I THINK PART OF THAT IS REALLY STARTING TO ASSESS WHAT YOUR INTERNAL BIASES ARE.

WE KNOW THAT, FOR EXAMPLE, IN TERMS OF HOW PAIN IS TREATED IN BLACK PATIENTS, LIKE, THERE IS DATA THAT SHOWS THAT BLACK PATIENTS PAIN IS OFTEN, LIKE, UNDERTREATED, THAT THE PERCEPTION OF HOW MUCH IN PAIN THEY ARE IS LESS THAN WHITE PATIENTS.

>> IT DOES MAKE YOU WONDER IF SOME OF THESE POOR OUTCOMES ARISE NOT JUST FROM ACCESS, BUT FROM AVOIDANCE.

YOU'VE HAD NECK EXPERIENCES WITH HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS, YOU THINK THEY'RE GOING TO LOOK DOWN ON YOU, TREAT YOU POORLY, YOU DON'T GO.

IT JUST SORT OF MAKES YOU WONDER, YOU KNOW?

YEAH.

>> THE THING ABOUT THIS IDEA ABOUT UNMET NEEDS IN BLACK COMMUNITIES, AND THOSE UNMET NEEDS ARE OFTEN A RESULT OF BLACK PATIENTS NOT FEELING COMFORTABLE ENOUGH TO SEEK CARE.

AND SO, WHEN THEY DON'T SEEK CARE, WHATEVER DISEASE PROCESS IS HAPPENING ACTUALLY GETS WORSE.

I WROTE ABOUT A PATIENT IN MY BOOK WHO, YOU KNOW, I WAS IN URGENT CARE WITH HIM, AN ELDERLY BLACK MAN, HE HAD COVID PNEUMONIA.

I SAID, SIR, YOU NEED TO GO TO THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT.

HE SAID, NO, I KNOW THEY'RE NOT GOING TO TREAT ME WELL THERE.

AND TO THIS DAY, I WONDER ABOUT HIM, I WONDER HOW MANY OTHER PATIENTS WERE LIKE HIM THAT DECIDED TO GO HOME BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T WANT TO GO TO THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT, BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T THINK THEY WOULD RECEIVE RESPECTFUL AND DIGNIFIED CARE.

>> SO, WHAT'S THE WAY FORWARD HERE?

I MEAN, YOU'VE POINTED OUT SO MANY THINGS.

WHAT'S THE WAY FORWARD HERE?

IN YOUR OPINION?

>> SO, I HAVE A LOT OF IDEAS ABOUT THE WAY FORWARD, BUT I DO THINK, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE THINGS THAT PEOPLE CAN DO ON AN INDIVIDUAL AND A PERSONAL LEVEL AND THEN MORE ON A POLICY LEVEL.

I THINK ON, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY, THE THINGS I MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, MEDICAL SCHOOLS MAKING SURE THE CURRICULUM TELLS THE HISTORY AND IS, YOU KNOW, AN ANTI-RACIST CURRICULUM, THAT WE CREATE DIVERSE, INCLUSIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS FOR OUR BLACK STUDENTS AND OTHER STUDENTS OF COLOR, BECAUSE THAT'S THE OTHER ISSUE.

ONCE THEY GET THERE, THEY ARE OFTEN FEELING ISOLATED AND HAVE TO DEAL WITH MICROAGGRESSIONS, BUT I ALSO THINK IT'S THE OBLIGATION OF ACADEMIC MEDICAL INSTITUTIONS, HOSPITALS, AND EVEN, YOU KNOW, LOCAL, STATE GOVERNMENTS TO REALLY INVEST IN THE PIPELINE OF BLACK PHYSICIANS, STARTING FROM HIGH SCHOOL, STARTING FROM KINDERGARTEN, IN TERMS OF MENTORING, SPONSORING, EVEN FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.

I TALK ABOUT THIS IN "THE WASHINGTON POST" PIECE ABOUT BEING REALLY INTENTIONAL ABOUT ADDRESSING THE LACK OF GENERATIONAL WEALTH IN BLACK COMMUNITIES, TO ENSURE WE HAVE ACCESS TO THESE OPPORTUNITIES.

I WOULD ALSO LOVE FOR POLICYMAKERS TO READ THIS BOOK AND UNDERSTAND THAT HEALTH IS IN ALL POLICIES, SO, I DO THINK THAT WHEN WE LOOK AT THE UNITED STATES AND AS YOU MENTIONED, WE HAVE SOME OF THE WORTH HEALTH OUTCOMES, NOT JUST FOR BLACK PEOPLE, EVERYBODY.

LIFE EXPECTANCY OVERALL IS GOING DOWN, AND WE SPEND THE MOST ON HEALTH CARE.

AND SO, THERE ARE SOME BASIC THINGS, MAKING SURE THAT EVERYONE HAS HEALTH INSURANCE.

WE KNOW PEOPLE ARE HEALTHIER, PEOPLE DO BETTER.

WHEN WE LOOK AT HOUSING, EDUCATION, EMPLOYMENT, THERE ARE WAYS THAT WE CAN REALLY MAKE PEOPLE HEALTHIER BY INVESTING IN POLICIES IN THOSE AREAS, AS WELL.

>> YOUR BOOK ARRIVES AT A TIME WHEN YOU HAVE SOME INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS WHO ARE VERY AGGRESSIVELY PUSHING BACK AGAINST THE KIND OF HISTORY, HIDDEN HISTORY THAT YOU'VE UNCOVERED, AND REMEDIES THAT YOU RECOMMEND.

GIVEN THAT YOU'VE GOT THIS VERY HOSTILE POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT, EVEN TO KNOWING THESE THINGS, I'M JUST CURIOUS IN HOW YOU FEEL THAT CAN BE OVERCOME, WHAT WOULD OVERCOME THAT?

>> I KNOW WE'RE IN VERY DIFFICULT TIMES, LIKE, EVEN THE RECENT SCOTUS DECISION, I FEAR THAT'S PROBABLY GOING TO HAVE A SIMILAR RIPPLE EFFECTS ACT THE FLEXNER REPORT.

I THINK WE HAVE TO BE REALLY SMART, INNOVATIVE.

MEDICAL SCHOOLS HAVE TO THINK ABOUT WHAT ARE THE WORKAROUNDS, IN TERMS OF ADDRESSING THE SCOTUS DECISION.

SOME MEDICAL SCHOOLS ARE SAYING, WE'RE JUST GOING TO LOOK AT CLASS, I SAY THAT'S NOT ENOUGH, BECAUSE THAT DOESN'T ADDRESS THE ROOTS OF RACISM.

I DO THINK WE HAVE TO ORGANIZE, I THINK WE HAVE TO WORK WITH OUR POLICYMAKERS AND LEGAL FOLKS TO COME UP WITH REALLY SMART WAYS TO COUNTERACT THIS, BUT I KNOW IT'S GOING TO BE, DEFINITELY GOING TO BE A CHALLENGE.

I TRY TO STAY POSITIVE, BUT I'M CONCERNED.

>> BEFORE I LET YOU GO, I HAVE TO ASK, YOUR MOM, SUCH A PIONEER, YOU LOST HER WHEN YOU WERE ONLY 19 YEARS OLD.

SHE -- SHE ACCOMPLISHED SO MUCH IN HER SHORT TIME HERE ON EARTH.

SHE WAS ONLY 47.

BUT IF SHE WERE HERE TODAY, WHAT DO YOU THINK HER MESSAGE WOULD BE?

>> OH, WOW.

WELL, I THINK SHE'D BE VERY PROUD OF ME.

WHICH IS -- YOU KNOW, I ALWAYS WANT THAT FROM HER.

BUT YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT SHE HAD THIS VISION OF, YOU KNOW, THE WORK THAT WE NEED TO DO ON BEHALF OF OUR COMMUNITIES.

I THINK SHE WOULD BE ALONGSIDE ME, BEING A HEALTH EQUITY ADVOCATE.

I FEEL LIKE THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ME TO GIVE MY MOTHER A PLATFORM, BECAUSE SOME OF THESE IDEAS, YOU KNOW, THE LOCAL HEALTH FAIRS SHE WAS HAVING, ALL OF THAT IS WHAT WE NOW CALL HEALTH EQUITY.

SHE WOULD BE WORKING TO ADVANCE A LOT OF THE EFFORTS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT TODAY.

>> DR. UCHE BLACKSTOCK, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TALKING WITH US TODAY.

>> THANK YOU.