Mocking and Ignoring Black Women in Pain

When will it end?

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For years, people have taken Black women and their pain as a joke.

Numerous doctors fail to help Black women. But why? Many doctors believe that Black women do not experience pain or at least not as much as other races.

Sandhya Somashekhar from the Washington Post reports, “Researchers at the University of Virginia quizzed white medical students and residents to see how many believed inaccurate and at times "fantastical" differences about the two races -- for example, that blacks have less sensitive nerve endings than whites or that black people's blood coagulates more quickly.”

Till this day, many doctors still believe this false narrative. Black women have blood, bones, and pain just like other women. We should not be turned away or ignored due to their skin complexion and race. Many Black women have reported their pain to their doctors, including me.

There were times where I reported pelvic pain to my gynecologist. I had to tell her about this pain at least four times and she finally gave me an exam for it.

There was another time where I had unfortunately been raped and reported it to my pediatrician the same day. The DNA was still fresh and my vagina was red. Instead of giving me a rape kit test or reporting the crime to the police, she told me, “well tell the guy not to do it again.” This made me not trust her ever again. I really wanted to get a new doctor but I did not want to tell my mom the reason why. I felt unsafe, empty, violated during this experience.

Many doctors will allow their patients to feel this way to avoid doing extra work for their job. They would rather have us die instead of helping us.

For example, 26-year old Amber Issac died due to neglect from her doctors. Her platelet count was low. She was admitted to the hospital in late April after trying to get an appointment since February. During her stay, she developed HELLP syndrome. This includes dropping the platelet count. If you have a low platelet, your body cannot form clots. And blood clots serve as a defense mechanism in women's bodies. It can also cause an elevated liver enzyme which can lead to liver problems. And it can also cause hemolysis which is hemoglobinemia which is a medical condition where there is an excess of hemoglobin in the blood plasma. All in all, the HELLP syndrome is dangerous for the body if not treated quickly and correctly. It can cause problems with your blood, liver, and blood pressure. Hopefully doctors can take this story and many others as a lesson. Stop neglecting patients, no matter the race. And if a doctor was to neglect and ignore your pain, make sure to ask for them to say it in writing and explain why.

Besides doctors, ignoring black women when they are in pain, Black people can do it too. They use their pain as a joke or blame the woman, especially with celebrities.

When Chris Brown horribly abused Rihanna in February 2009, many #breezy fans started blaming Rihanna and saying that she hit him first. It does not matter if this is true or not, Rihanna was the one who came out with the most bruises. A man should not be putting their hands on a woman. And relationships and friendships should not be abusive.

Another example is a recent tragedy, Megan Thee Stallion was shot and had to get surgery in both feet. She has not confirmed the suspect as of now. However, the internet thinks it was because of rapper, Tory Lanez. People started expressing rumors about the situation, saying how Megan hit Tory first because he was giving more attention to Kylie Jenner. Memes of her were forming instantly. Chrissy Tiegan even tried to make a joke about her, I guess she didn’t read the room.

People also started joking about her Megan is trans and that is why Tory shot her. Which even if that was true, being trans does not give anybody the right to shoot them. People also dragged model Draya Michele for explaining how Megan and Tory had, “some sort of Bobby and Whitney love.” She continues saying, “I’m here for it, I like that. I want you to like me so much that you shoot me in the foot too.” Her comments during this interview made her lose her Fenty ambassador position with Rihanna. Which makes sense because why joke about abuse and one of your boss’s was a victim of abuse?

Overall, Black women’s pain is not a joke, a meme, or a tweet. We should be taken seriously in every way possible. We cannot always be strong. And that is okay. We are allowed to feel weak and not be okay. It may take us hours, days, weeks, or months, but eventually, we will be able to pick ourselves up when we feel like it is time.