Surgeon general under fire for telling African Americans not to smoke, drink or take drugs...

[Soph0571]

and 'highly offensive' use of 'big momma' as coronavirus pandemic hits black community hardest

Surgeon General Jerome Adams has been met with outrage by the black community for using phrases like 'abuela', 'big momma' and 'poppop', while pleading for minorities to not drink or smoke and follow the government's guidelines to slow the spread of the coronavirus .

'We need you to do this if not for yourself than for your abuela. Do it for your granddaddy, do it for your big momma, do it for your poppop,' the nation's top doctor said Friday at the daily coronavirus taskforce briefing - while also advising those groups to 'avoid alcohol, tobacco and drugs.'

Adams told Americans of color that they need to 'step up' to stop the spread of coronavirus, and said 'social ills' are likely a contributing factor when looking at the dire statistics that the outbreak has killed twice as many black and Latino people than white Americans.
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'The surgeon general telling black folks not to drink and smoke and do it for ya "paa paa and big momma". Where they get this guy from? How dumb do they think we are with this? How bout suggesting that EVERYONE cut back? Let's not do that ok?' Jordan said.

[link:https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8210359/Surgeon-general-fire-offensive-instruction-black-Americans-not-smoke-drink.html|]

Trumps America. Fucking racist nasty. All the while I think they are not worried about the disproportionate amount of POC dying from this virus. White nationalism and all.

[jmg257]

1. Saw it - wasn't actually that bad. Trying to be personable via his own experience.

Besides, people wanted to know why AA are suffering more, obviously underlying health and social distancing are big reasons.

[HipChick]

13. Have to disagree..

It was highly condescending..

[Skittles]

2. Adams is black

I don't think he meant it to sound the way it did - he's saying that for those who are more vulnerable to be a COVID casualty due to things they cannot control (especially racism), concentrate on those things you maybe CAN control.

[greatauntoftriplets]

3. My jaw dropped when I heard him say that.

He was an unexpected source for that dog whistle.

[jimfields33]

7. He is African American. I think I'll let the community speak to it

[Soph0571]

15. And they are nt

[former9thward]

31. Do you think the twitter mob speaks for the AA community?

Or any community?

[Soph0571]

32. Do you think they are not part of their own community? n/t

[former9thward]

33. I don't think anyone on twitter speaks for anybody.

No matter what community. We have gone quite far when someone who opposes cigarette smoking is now a racist. Tobacco companies could not be happier.

[lunasun]

4. Not the same but brought back in my head the Pound Cake speech by Bill Cosby for some reason

Dude don’t you are embarrassing your abuela and paw paw
Sorry offensive to many he was addressing even if white people dont see it

[HipChick]

14. Exactly...

[Soph0571]

16. This n/t

[Loki Liesmith]

5. People are overreacting to this

[JDC]

6. I don't like this guy, but this feels like a stretch

[CaptYossarian]

8. Is this from a deleted scene from Hollywood Shuffle?

He's mixing Ebonics with Just Say No.

Only Trump could find someone like this.

[lunasun]

20. ++Robert Townsend classic As one of his characters from black acting school would say about

this trump dump You know this guy eats Tom Turkey on thanksgiving

But thanks for reminding me about this movie I had long forgotten + to remember his great talent and he’s from here! (Chicago)

[CaptYossarian]

27. Yeah, me too.

Still have some Humboldt Park/Belmont-Cragin characteristics in me. That's why Chicago PD makes me smile. You're supposed to believe it's fiction, but we know better.

Townsend is another comic genius from there, but hasn't hit the Robin Williams/John Belushi level yet. At least he's still with us.

[yellowwoodII]

9. Sounds like good advice to me

No matter your race

[Soph0571]

21. The point is he made it about race using easy stereotypes n/t

[spicysista]

10. So many people fail to realize how deeply....

White supremacy affects and infects everyone. This also includes those whom are oppressed. Self hatred is encouraged from many directions in our society. It leaves its ugly mark on us all. You can learn and grow from its lessons or you can internalize them into your being...hating yourself and those like you. Why did he feel the need to warn us (blacks) separately about those so-called "social ills"?

Some videos for those who are actually interested in the topic (subtle and lasting effects of racism) and why some see a problem with the doctor's statement.

(Gets really to the point at the 4 minute mark. Minute 5 starts the topic of internalized racism.)

(A global perspective...starting immediately at the 1 minute mark)

(An Asian American's perspective....)

[Soph0571]

18. Thanks!

Huge contribution to my OP

[spicysista]

25. Thanks for posting this thread. 😉

[milestogo]

11. 'abuela' means grandfather in Spanish

How is that offensive?

[cwydro]

12. Actually it means "Grandmother."

Abuelo would be grandfather.

[lunasun]

28. Because plenty of Hispanics call their grandmother

Grandma and plenty AAs don’t call out for Big mama
and an even bigger issue plenty don’t smoke, drink or take drugs..just as plenty of white people dont

So only pointing out minorities for this stern warning is already a wtf PSA

[IndyOp]

17. He used the names he used in his family - Yamiche asked and he

explained those were family names. He may have been wrong to use them - even if they were terms of endearment in his family, but he was not insulting others.

[Soph0571]

19. Not buying the cheese n/t

[IndyOp]

22. I saw the presser. I don't like the guy. He looked guileless when answering. (nt)

[IndyOp]

23. I saw the presser. I don't like the guy. He looked guileless when answering. (nt)

[lunasun]

29. What ? You don't believe he calls his grandmother abuela ??

[lunasun]

30. What ? You don't believe he calls his grandmother abuela ??

[Hortensis]

24. Hey, at least he didn't plead with them to talk to their children

so their brains can develop normally.

[Soph0571]

26. Heh. Well there is that

👀

[lame54]

34. Meanwhile many people have increased...

Masturbating like another Surgeon General suggested

[pansypoo53219]

35. shit. even bill maher gave us SMOKING pot. makes sense to me.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

36. White people have a higher rate of smoking and alcohol use than black people, but okay.

[qwlauren35]

37. If he had said

When something seems wrong with your health, don't ignore it. Go see a doctor. It could be nothing. BUT, it could also be diabetes or high blood pressure, which hit our communities harder. It could be cancer.

And if the doctor blows off your concerns, get a second opinion. The medical community is not perfect, and they still can be dismissive of black people. It's a problem of systematic racism, so you have to pro-active.

If he had spoken the truth, I would have more respect for him. More and more African-Americans are embracing healthy lifestyles such as vegetarianism and veganism. I can assure you that such people would not pollute their bodies with excessive alcohol and cigarettes.

Systematic racism has a great deal to do with this disparity. There are not enough black doctors, and white doctors have historically misdiagnosed and belittled black people's health issues. As a result, many black people are afraid of doctors, or unwilling to go. And health issues go unchecked.

In the same way that the Nazi's experimented on Jews and twins, white American doctors have experimented on black people "in the name of science". In addition to the Tuskegee experiment when drugs were withheld from black men with syphillus to see how the condition progressed, there was a doctor in NY who experimented on black women's uteruses including performing hysterectomies, without anesthesia. He believed we had a higher pain tolerance.

A lot of us don't trust doctors.