Thrive speaks on what it means to be anti-racist:
Recent events have awakened me. I am deeply saddened by the death of Mr. George Floyd. I feel horrified as to how he died. I recognize that his death unfortunately represents centuries of discrimination and racism in our country especially toward the Black community. Our mission at Thrive Pediatrics is to inspire children and those who care for them, to thrive. Therefore, we oppose all forms of racism, discrimination and racial oppression.
As pediatricians our premier responsibility is to promote great health and safety for children and adolescents in order to optimize their developmental, physical and emotional growth. We advocate on behalf of a premature newborn weighing as little as 3 lbs to young adults. We witness the love that parents and guardians have for these children throughout their upbringing. We too, love these children and do our best to practice preventative medicine to keep them safe. Speaking out against racism is an essential tenet of this preventative medicine.
In an article by Dr. Adiaha Spinks-Franklin, MD entitled, On Becoming an Anti-racist she emphasizes that an anti-racist just does not sit back say, “I am not a racist,” but takes the time and concentrated effort to consistently conduct introspection into their own biases and prejudices. This person becomes comfortable with discussing uncomfortable topics. They work to recognize their own privileges, listen to those who are marginalized, and use their privileges to break down barriers of inequality. They strive to connect and bond and love those people of other races so that they can rid themselves of racist tendencies, behaviors or thoughts.
We pledge to our community that we will strive to create a “culturally sensitive medical home,” as recommended in the American Academy of Pediatrics policy on the impact of racism . We will work as a team and as individuals to help the families we serve feel safe in our community. This will include, but not be limited to, screening our patients for bullying or racist events for which they would need added help, because we recognize that such events negatively impact children’s lives and that of their families. We will advocate on behalf of evidence-based programs to stop racism. We will continue to educate ourselves on what we can do as healthcare providers to stop racism.
We strive to provide simple, clean and fun pediatric care at Thrive Pediatrics. Children deserve to have fun and feel safe and confident in their surroundings. They should not feel guarded or limited based on the color of their skin. We hope to join many others in this achievable effort to end racism.
