Woke Archives - Marilyn Singleton, MD JD

America Out Loud PULSE: Woke Antisemitism Hurts All of Us

From my America Out Loud Pulse podcast with David L. Bernstein – https://www.americaoutloud.com/woke-antisemitism-hurts-all-of-us/

When I was in law school, critical race theory was an academic exercise reserved for graduate school mental gymnastics. Unfortunately, the overlords have used the reality of lingering racism to divide those who have spent years coming together. Improving fairness and living conditions for all in our society has taken an ugly turn. We went from striving for equal opportunity to a contest to see who is the most oppressed victim.

Moreover, people used to be happy that there are all kinds of folks who good works for their communities, no matter their political leanings. Now only those who swear upon the Social Justice gods that our society is driven by the struggle between the oppressors and the oppressed are allowed to be called righteous. To be legitimate, one must reject, “dominant, exploitative systems in the United States, which are largely reliant on anti-Black racism, colonialism, cisheteropatriarchy, white supremacy, and capitalism…” as White Coats for Black Lives instructs.

The recent rise in antisemitism is the canary in the coal mine for the growing hatred of those who are not like you. Ironically, at UC Berkeley, home of the free speech movement of the 1960s, has “woke” campus groups seeking to ban speakers who support Israel. Demonizing others to prop up another group is unjust.

Jewish tradition warns that one must not pursue justice through unjust means. The concept applies to all of us. It is unjust when medical institutions had race as a factor in distributing anti-Covid medications or in the name of reparations favor black heart failure patients for treatment. There are health disparities but we need more open discussion on dealing with them without shortchanging others.

It’s time to remember the line from the 1946 poem by German Lutheran pastor Martin Niemöller: “Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out—Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.” The dangerous path of modern day wokeism fosters group biases rather than focus on an individual’s character. So let’s have more debate. It’s time to speak up.

My guest is a long-time Jewish leader we will discuss how woke ideology shuts down discussion of sensitive topics and is a breeding ground for antisemitism.

David L. Bernstein is the founder if the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values (JILV). The Institute supports viewpoint diversity, counters woke ideology in the Jewish community, and opposes novel forms of antisemitism emerging from woke ideology. He served as president and CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, as national umbrella for local Jewish advocacy. He has recently written a book, Woke Antisemitism exploring how progressive ideology harms Jews.

America Out Loud PULSE: Brain, Heart, and Medical School Wokeism

February 22, 2023 No Comments

From my America Out Loud Pulse podcast with Diana Blum, MD – https://www.americaoutloud.com/brain-heart-and-medical-school-wokeism/

When I applied to medical school, the criteria were the ability to handle the academics and compassion for patients. Yes, medicine was a white male dominated field. My class had 13 women out of 132 students. Most schools were aware of the lack of women in medicine and as of 2019 the majority of medical students are women.

At a time when women in medical schools were rare, Johns Hopkins Hospital is an example of how admitting women to a major medical school in the 1890s did not mean lowering standards. It meant giving women an equal opportunity. This welcome change came about because Hopkins needed money to build the medical school. Four daughters of the original university trustees promised to raise the needed half a million dollars on the condition that the medical school accept women. The benefactors were clear: the entrance requirements were strict and had to be met by both male and female applicants.

In the late 1960s, many schools addressed attracting students from various ethnic groups hoping to better serve all demographics. But when it came to race, equal opportunity became affirmative action. The 1978 U.S. Supreme Court Bakke decision held that creating a diverse classroom environment is a compelling state interest under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Thus, it is permissible for affirmative action programs to take race into account in the admissions process.

Unfortunately, politics commandeered diversity. It has morphed from students from different backgrounds socializing and learning together with the common goal of becoming stellar physicians who deliver compassionate, quality medical care. Now diversity means condemning different kinds of people to a life in their own racial or gender silo. People are no longer seen as individual human beings. Worse yet for the future of medical care, achieving diversity in school or the workplace is taking precedence over excellence.

Competence and compassion can be found in white, black, gay, straight, male, and female physicians. We all were meant to work together to deliver great medical care to each and every one of our patients.

My guest and I will talk a little medicine and a lot of the politics of medicine with the new emphasis on wokeness possibly at the expense of excellence.