African Americans Pros And Cons

If one were to observe the world’s current state of affairs in terms of disease, medicine, the providing (or lack thereof) of healthcare, and the general well-being of the inhabitants of our planet, a number of glaring issues and disparities would be extremely apparent from biological, sociological, economic, psychological, and even racial perspectives alike. It is estimated that in the U.S. alone, around twenty percent of the population cannot afford or access adequate health-care. Keep in mind that the United States is widely considered to be one of the leading nations in caring for their sick, injured, elderly, and dying when compared to countries with much more dire circumstances when it comes to their infrastructures of health. This is

not to overlook however, the grave situations in which many of our nation's citizens find themselves in. The sad fact of the matter is that we live in a society in which many of those who are suffering from disease, illness, and injury are unable to receive the treatment and care that they desperately need, and are most times left by the medical and governmental institutions, that provide care for so many others, to fend for themselves. While many Americans would justify these gaping inequalities by stating that our country’s current health-care system is the most optimal for a capitalist, free-market economy, and that those who cannot afford proper health-care always have the opportunity to “work harder and make more money”, these explanations mean little to the citizen living paycheck to paycheck who suddenly find themselves sick or injured, unable to work, and unable to provide for all of those who depend on them.
In my junior year of high-school, I enrolled in a course offered by the science department titled “Epidemiology”, with almost no prior knowledge of the discipline itself and only a vague idea of what the word itself meant. As I progressed further and further into the class, I began to understand the concept of looking at widespread health complications and diseases with the intention of finding solutions to these issues as quickly, efficiently, and as inclusive to everyone affected as possible. While politics and a myriad of other complex factors play significantly into the decisions and actions taken by modern-day epidemiological institutions and organizations, the central ideology of studying and preventing the cause and outbreak of disease appealed to me as a fascinating field of study, and immediately became one of my top prospects in terms of a future career.
Growing up a Black male in today’s world has proven to be one of my greatest sources of pride and inspiration, and at the same time, a permanent.

sobering reminder of both the overt and discrete discriminatory and racist practices utilized by infrastructures across the globe. every day. I often find myself as one of the few African-Americans in the majority of my college courses, and regularly have my knowledge doubted or double-checked by my peers when engaging in group activities and projects, and sometimes even by my professors and teacher’s assistants. I am eternally grateful to my parents, extended family, and the peers and teachers who helped to raise me for keeping the proverbial wool that is pulled over so many eyes from doing so, and opening my mind to the hard, cold fact that life is not fair, and that there are many of those in power who intend to keep it that way. From the first time that my parents passed the knowledge of the capture and subsequent enslavement of our people centuries ago to my younger brother and I around the age of seven, I have, for the most part, viewed reality through a critical, analytical, and logical lens, and regularly notice the surprise on people’s faces when they hear a six-foot-two, athletically built Black man speak articulately with rational arguments and critiques of the socio economic gaps present from both racial and class-based perspectives. I have accepted the reality that a large amount of people’s initial assumptions of me will be mostly negative, but utilize this aspect of reality to motivate me and pursue goals with the idea of ending human suffering and fostering inclusion and equal treatment in all populations of people on the planet. While the rampant social injustice and racism that I see and experience on a daily basis pains me, it simultaneously incites a passionate desire to positively impact as many people’s lives as I possibly can, in hopes of inspiring those who come after me to do try and do the

same.
As my life progresses forward, I hope to acquire at the very minimum a masters in either Epidemiology or Health Management and Policy, as well as a medical degree from an accredited graduate institution or program. I feel that obtaining skills and knowledge within a graduate program of public health will allow me to tackle the threat of disease as well as sharpen my critical thinking skills to find solutions to widespread health issues and disparities. Additionally obtaining a medical degree and perhaps even a specialization would then allow me to understand the mechanisms behind diseases, illnesses, and injuries, while simultaneously providing me with the tools necessary to treat and heal those in need. I would at some point, in no particular order, like to work for an institution such as the World Health Organization or the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and also travel to the people in the world who need medical treatment and use my own two hands to alleviate their suffering. If admitted to the Summer Research Opportunity Program at the University of Michigan, I would be able to further develop my skills in both quantitative and qualitative research, which are both key components to the careers I hope to pursue in the near future. Being able to work with some of the nation’s top researchers mentoring me would prove to be an invaluable experience for not only my academic career, but for the types of work I plan on doing in my professional career as well.
As an African-American hoping to significantly diminish some of the stark health disparities present in many ethnic minority groups in societies all across the world, I can provide an essential component to the diversity of the Summer Research Opportunity Program. Living in Chicago, Washington D.C., Ann Arbor Michigan, and East Lansing in that order has provided me with what I consider to be a wide spectrum of unique experiences that I am able to contrast and compare to better understand people from all walks of life, and maintain a culturally relativistic mindset when considering challenges we as a species face, compared to the ones I face in my relatively microscopic corner of the Earth. I am a firm believer in every individual’s ability to make meaningful, helpful contributions to anything ranging from an academic presentation to determining patient zero in a global pandemic, and that everyone has the right as a human being to have their voices heard and their opinions considered. Collaboration and coexistence are two of the major determining factors in relation to any group’s success, and as a rising young adult, having the opportunity to meet and work with individuals vastly different from myself is something that I not only welcome, but even prefer, compared to being with mainly like-minded individuals. As a man who welcomes change and embraces having to constantly adapt to an infinitely changing, at times hostile environment, I feel that there exists an unfathomable amount of knowledge available to absorb and apply throughout the duration of my life. The Summer Research Opportunity Program would be an ideal environment for myself to acquire the skills I need to aid the world, and meet other individuals who want to do the same.