ORLANDO, Fla. – The global outcry surrounding race and policing following the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis has lead to many conversations about racism in the United States.
News 6 interviewed Dr. Candice Jones, a pediatrician with Edgewater Pediatrics in Orlando and spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics to hear how racism can significantly impact the health of children.
Q: How have the recent events surrounding the death of George Floyd affected our health?
A: “You know, as in life, everything accumulates, right? And we had daily stressors in all of our lives and then we had COVID pandemic, and then now we have over the past couple of months we’re learning of multiple deaths of African Americans unjustly, and now George Floyd’s death that everybody could see on camera. And it’s a lot of stress on everyone, everyone, and then when you take the African American community who has felt for a very long time, frankly over 400 years in this country of dealing with oppression and discrimination and racism, we’ve come a long way, but there’s so far to go, and when we see that, that just adds more to our historical trauma.”
Q: How do you talk to kids about this topic?
A: “It’s a tough topic. In the African American community, we have ‘The talk’ with our kids. I have an 11-year-old black son -- and my son has heard the talk. He knows about racism, he knows our history in this country. Most kids may get a little bit with Black History Month, right? Watered down versions, short versions, but, it’s a tough conversation to tell an innocent child that unfortunately, this world is unfair, and that it’s unfair based on the color of people’s skin, not the content of their character. It’s important that we all, not just African Americans, talk to our children about racism, we have to be upfront. They need to know about it to be equipped and to be empowered to do something about it.”
Q: What would you tell parents of young children, under the age of five, about how to talk about racism?
A: “Do it age appropriately. If you have a very mature 4-year-old that is asking you about this, definitely have the conversation. Don’t sugar coat it, don’t brush them off, tell them the truth. I find that children really relate to stories and songs. There are wonderful cartoons: PBS kids, Daniel Tiger, wonderful books, that talk about race and racism, that would be a great starting point for kids in that age range.”
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Q: How does this topic or this part of our society, racism, impact our health?
A: “I’m a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics and I am so proud of our organization because we last year released a policy statement on the impact of racism on kids’ health. It is a very detailed look at the evidence of how racism actually hurts us all but hurts kids because that’s what we’re concerned about because they’re our future. And so, it goes into the nuances of what racism is, how it shows up in our daily lives, how we can talk to our kids about it, and how we can equip them to be anti-racist, and ourselves. So I really encourage people to look at that. You can go to HealthyChildren.org and get that document and a whole lot of other great information on combating racism.”
Q: What does it mean to you to be a part of that?
A: “It means a lot, it really means a lot. And really as an African American woman physician, it means a lot that they have taken on this as a point of advocacy to improve the health and well being of children because there are so many organizations that are not, still not, recognizing this impact of racism on our lives, and so I really, really applaud them for that and support them in this effort.”
Q: How has COVID impacted the African American community and is this added stress a factor?
A: “You know COVID has been said many times, COVID is a perfect example of how racism which is a social determinant of health, shows up in the lives of African Americans and so we know that the African American community has been disproportionately affected in this pandemic, and we know that racism, our systemic institutional discriminations, our explicit and implicit biases in the healthcare industry and in our society is a driver of the health inequities that have led to the way the African American community has been affected by this pandemic. And so that’s just another example of that.”
Q: What can we all do to help one another?
A: “Get creative, and it all comes from our heart to want to reach out and help one another. Again check in with your kids, to see how they’re feeling and what they know. Help them to guide that conversation, so that goes for adults too. Preparation is empowering. Come up with ways to deal with racism, be purposeful and intentional about this, help each other fight against it. And stay safe in police encounters, learn, teach each other. Be age-appropriate with your kids, limit this exposure. Because it can really raise your anxiety, your worries and your stress levels. Check-in once a day maybe, but limit it and limit it for your kids. And then all of us, just learn about one another. Expose ourselves, develop friendships with African Americans, with white Americans and try to get to know each other so that we know we’re all more alike than we are different.”