On Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016, The National Center for Bioethics held a seminar in the John A. Kenney Hall Auditorium on a very important but often disparaged issue dealing with the perception and portrayal of the black body in US media. Dr. Joan Harrell tapped into history to show the relevance of this topic today. She then had an open discussion with faculty, staff, and students of Tuskegee University.
Dr. Harrell is a researcher with many areas of interest. Not only is she the Senior Associate Editor of the National Center for Bioethics in Research and Health Care, but she is also the Strategic External Public Health Communications Ethics Consultant.
The seminar was geared at preparing students to conduct ethical research which involves questioning the constantly changing issues of the world, raising awareness of the importance of bioethics and research ethics in the broader aspect of ethics and, finally, pointing to the necessity of the Bioethics Center in all fields of study.
Sara Baartman, Henrietta Lacks and “The Nameless Father of Slavery” were all placed on the table for discussion.
Dr. Harrell opened with tales of subjected black bodies in history and directly correlated them to the subjection of black bodies in the present day.
Sara Baartman (pictured) was a young African woman presumably around the age of 23 whose body image was distorted to insinuate that she was a lesser being. Nonetheless, she could speak four languages: English, Dutch, French and her native Afrikaans. She was socially aware of the issues that Africans faced and she desired to speak against these issue. Baartman was tricked into believing that if she traveled to England, she would be able to speak out for her people and hopefully ignite a change. Upon her arrival, however, Baartman was stripped of her clothes and paraded in circuses and zoos. Even after death, Baartman's body was mutilated and displayed in museums.
Henrietta Lacks was a cancer patient who, without her knowledge, had her cells harvested. These cells eventually became known as the Hela Immortal Cell Line and led to many medical breakthroughs in cancer research. At the time, her family was not notified. Only recently were they compensated.
“So, what do all these people have in common?” Dr. Harrell queried. “What do Sandra Bland, Trayvon Martin, Sara Baartman, Henrietta Lacks have in common?” Their black bodies, melanin, and mannerisms were all degraded.
As the seminar drew to an end, one of the professors in the audience asked, “Why?” This is a question many African Americans may have: why is the black body targeted in the media and scrutinized by legislation and the “superior” race?
The audience reacted with allegations of instilling fear or maintaining a sense of superiority for personal gain. The consensus, however, was that it all comes down to a simple concept of hierarchy. Someone must come out on top, and the African American population has caught the backlash of being the class on the bottom.
Nonetheless, knowledge is power. The awareness of the segregation and degradation that is affecting the African-American community is the first step toward change. The African American community is exerting energy trying to fight internally whilst the true culprits are disguised: our government, our justice system, our media, our prison system and so on.
