Video Replay...A powerful TuDiabetes Talks...The Intersection of Race and Diabetes. DOColors

When you have some free minutes, please watch this first of many powerful conversations on the intersection of race and diabetes with @mrmikelawson @Alexis_Newell and @Chelcie_Rice
The layers of diabetes…

If you can fit it in your schedule, please join in and support their incredible efforts in allowing all voices in the diabetes community to be heard. tudiabetes.org/talks Wednesday October 26th 8pm Eastern 5pm Pacific

I’m not trying to be difficult, I honestly don’t really understand what this is about… What races are being suppressed from being heard in the Diabetes Online Community?

This is the first I’ve heard that there is an issue.

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Hello @Dave26 !
DOColors is new to me as well. I am really looking forward to the opportunity to learn from the great discussion taking place tomorrow! I hope you will join in. I know the people involved are passionate about the work they do in order to help everyone with diabetes live their best life including equitable access.
Best, cynthia

I don’t know anything about this but I do know that major communities of color are not properly helped. All of the black, hispanic and native american populations. Where are they? Diabetes is rampant. Thank goodness for EsTuDiabetes, but I don’t see them here and I don’t seem them in the DOC. Perhaps some of it is also tied up in the fact that people with T2 also aren’t seen in proportional numbers.

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so true
I became more aware of this when I watched this video from this year’s Master Lab

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Ahhh… if the issue is one of outreach, and people in these communities not being as informed and receiving treatment, that I’m aware of and understand.

It just seemed to me there was a possible hint of racism in the DOC, suppressing voices, and that’s not something I see anywhere at all.

The DOC in my experience is one of the most open, welcoming community of people that I’ve been a part of, and I honestly can’t recall anything ever happening that could be blamed on racism.

I WILL say that, because of this experience and the rancor that occurs with just about anything race-related these days, I am loathe to support any movement that divides this unified, loving community along racial lines.

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It doesn’t even cross my mind-- if certain groups are less represented here I wouldn’t have even noticed it… I don’t even consider different skin colors as ‘groups’

Pancreases are all the same color

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Yes, me too. Race is not something that entered my mind in all the time I’ve been here until this event was organized. I really don’t want the DOC to become yet another place where we start arguing over which lives matter based on race.

To date, my experience in the DOC is that all are percieved equal. I don’t want that to change.

Diabetes doesn’t discriminate…but the community of people that are active tends to skew in one direction. This conversation is just to examine that. We’re bringing in a few voices of people with different perspectives to share their experiences. This may be a conversation about outreach. It may be a conversation about preventing exclusion.

Analogy tangent: If I put away all of the dishes at my house, I may put all of the plates on the top shelf. I’m 6 feet tall, and the top shelf is fine. My roommate, however, is 5’5". He wouldn’t be able to reach the top shelf.

This conversation is not about you and your experiences with race. This conversation is about what people of color are saying is their experience.

This conversation is not about tall people talking about where to put the plates. This conversation is led by the folks that have been struggling to reach a plate…as a tall guy, I’m going to show up and listen.

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And I think that this quote is really telling as well. The folks we’ll be interviewing later have a much different perspective. And I would guess have more trouble forgetting about race than you and I do. I hope you join us!

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Will it be available to watch the recording instead of live? I only access with mobile so I’m not very good at navigating the site to find such things.

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Yes! It will be archived in video format (TuDiabetes.org/Talks) and you can also catch it as an audio podcast (by searching “TuDiabetes Talks” wherever you get podcasts).

http://gifdanceparty.giphy.com/assets/dancers/smooch.gif

Part of writing this piece came from what I have observed as a member of the DOC, and as a the wife of a black man who has T2, and a black son with type 1.

Access to programs, education, healthcare, even this chat right here, aren’t as readily available for those who may live in poverty, or lower/lower middle class. So it is a class issue and a race issue, as finances and race can and do intersect.

Another important aspect is, when dealing with police, we have seen several instances of people being brutalized, beaten, even killed for not complying with an order.

We have seen people with diabetes tasered while having a hypo episode. What happens when that person is a large male of color? Will they be able to walk away alive?

Another personal experience for me, had to do with a person of color with diabetes, who died in jail. I plan to discuss this on the podcast.

I hope you can join us.

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I plan to listen in or watch but won’t be able to catch it live.

Re police: we’ve also seen a large Hispanic police officer torture and beat to death a 140 lb schizophrenic white man while he begged for his father to save him on video (Kelly Thomas)
— so I don’t really buy that the law enforcement problems and abuses when it comes to health issues are strictly a black and white issue—

But I will listen to the discussion in the context of diabetes with an open mind. Thanks,
Sam

It’s absolutely an ableism issue, however ableism and racism do intersect.

I appreciate that. Remember this isn’t about division, it’s about opening the door to hear the experiences and concerns of others in the DOC.

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Love this analogy. It did feel like the thread was getting a little "tall’ there for a minute.

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Interesting discussion, just finished watching it. A couple questions. Thank you for putting it on.

Are you and Chelsea members here? I noticed that you just joined today. And also I’m not sure how this escaped me through the entire video-- but is Chelsea your husband?

It is always interesting to see someone discuss their perspective in ways that would have never occurred to me. The part that I most related to was surprising to me, as we both have major concerns of our children’s health problems (although it’s a different health issue in our case) causing major problems in any future interactions with law enforcement…

Thanks for watching! No, lol Chelcie and I are friends.

I had an account long ago, but haven’t been active. Figured now what a good time to create a new one.

We hope we can bridge the gap between diabetes community and law enforcement, and prevent scenarios like ones mentioned. So many other conditions should be mentioned in the same breath as well.

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Thank you so much for taking time to share your stories and the work you are doing with the TuDiabetes community. It was a wonderful opportunity to learn and and grow forward together.
I knew @Chelcie_Rice was to be adored from the time I met him several months ago… I hope some day soon @Alexis_Newell we will also have the chance to meet! And that @mrmikelawson ain’t so bad either!

Not sure what a dancing pickle has to do with anything…but thanks!
cynthia

I agree, very well said. Thank Mike!

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