World on Fire: Chapter 1 Social Bias in Perceived Truths

I am writing this blog amidst protests and fires around me, all over the world. People are crying out #SystemicRacism, the dam of oppression overflowing from suppressed anguish and collective pain over another Black man killed under (literally) police custody. We are in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, but there is another #PublicHealthCrisis that has been around, brewing to toxic levels.

Multiplex Public Health Crisis

The #SocialDisparity is evident. I am waking up in the comfort of my own home. A home I own with my husband with enough rooms and bathrooms for all four of us. We have enough food in our refrigerator and pantry. Our main challenge is figuring out how to successfully work from home (WFH). Our main frustration and worries deal with managing our kids, house, and dog while we are all Sheltering in Place (SIP), especially our son who has a big imagination and demands a lot of time, energy, and attention. We struggle to prioritize our time properly, keep our house clean and our kids and community safe by wearing a mask.

Viruses are not racist. They will attack you regardless of nationality, race, class, age, and gender. Because its epicenter was Wuhan, China, many people perceived it to be a ‘Chinese’ virus. How did this #PerceivedTruth affect US handling of this health crisis? How did this #PerceivedTruth impact the outcome? Flights from China were halted and passengers quarantined. Flights from Europe were not. New York cases and deaths from COVID-19 spiked much higher than California.

If viruses are not racist, why is there such disproportionate levels of COVID-19 deaths in the African American population?

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is clay-banks-gIp2LCwSlV4-unsplash-2-1024x693.jpg — Demonstrating how it feels to be Black in America image by Clay Banks

The facts point to higher instances of underlying health conditions that make this population more vulnerable. Journalists, driven to uncover more truths, are finding that African Americans have inequitable access to healthcare as well. The disparity is even more complex. In my recent work with Praxi Data, I am learning about empowering insights through automated Machine Learning (ML) curation of metadata that lead to better data-driven decisions to solve business problems. Could we apply the same approach to solving real human problems?

Unbiased Big Data

Data in itself should equate to facts, but what we choose to see and how we interpret facts are often blurred through our biased lenses. Businesses, and society as a whole, can make better decisions with a larger pool of data, or data sets, presented as complex objects. Real truths are found in #BigData with the right algorithms: building data into more complex objects and not seen as isolated bits of data points that lead to false perceptions of truth. This is what, I believe, many People of Color (POC) are demanding: not revenge, but justice. And by justice, they want to be HEARD and SEEN as PEOPLE in PAIN due to social systems built upon systemic racism that have kept them down on their knees, begging for mercy.

They are not suffering from isolated cases of abuse, misfortune, or depravity. They are suffering from the inheritance of slavery. Beatrice Phi wrote both eloquently and harshly:

[The] black hatred which drove Derek Chauvin’s knee into George Floyd’s neck is one which predates the passage of every criminal code, every bill made into law, and every court ruling; the utter disdain for black bodies is an elusive kind of evil which has always outwitted the limitations of our government to confront the very fact of its violent foundation in slavery. Our laws are simply a reflection of what our democracy finds to be morally permissible, and thus the leniency with which police officers are given for their misconduct is a reflection of not insufficient legislation but rather the ways in which our civil society has historically enabled racism. From a very young age, we are all indoctrinated into certain predispositions about black people — of decadent welfare queens and criminal masterminds — and it is this underlying animus which always ends up pulling the trigger in the confrontations where black lives have never mattered.

(Sadly, Barack Obama is Wrong About George Floyd Jun 4, 2020)

African Americans and other POC are tired of carrying this burden on their own, telling and re-telling their stories to a cold, punitive system. The rest of us need to do the work: to learn, listen, and love to help lessen their burdens.

Recently, I heard Terry Gross interview Wes Moore on NPR’s Fresh Air. It really struck a chord in me, allowed me to see Freddie Gray – not as a gruesome statistic but – as a complex human being who was doomed to die early, starting from the day he was born: Simply because he was born Black, an African American.

Below is my attempt to depict Freddie Gray’s story through data. At which point do we begin weaving in our social biases to determine how we perceive and react towards him? Which data equation most accurately or completely defines who Freddie Gray was? What decisions and actions can be taken depending on the data equation we choose to look at?

African American = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male + poverty = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male + poverty + single mother = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male + poverty + single mother + drug addiction = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male + poverty + single mother + drug addiction + insufficient education = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male + poverty + single mother + drug addiction + insufficient education + developmental delays = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male + poverty + single mother + drug addiction + insufficient education + developmental delays + insufficient health care = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male + poverty + single mother + drug addiction + insufficient education + developmental delays + insufficient health care + history of systemic racism = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male + poverty + single mother + drug addiction + insufficient education + developmental delays + insufficient health care + history of systemic racism + FEAR of police = criminal/violent = someone to fear

African American + male + poverty + single mother + drug addiction + insufficient education + developmental delays + insufficient health care + history of systemic racism + FEAR of police + TRAUMA = criminal/violent = someone to fear

Systemic Racism + FEAR = Crime against African Americans = FEAR

I am ashamed to admit that my social biases kicked in by equation number 2. Being a minority myself, I have always been hyper aware of the negative sting of prejudices and have worked hard to be aware of my own. But I have to admit, in my younger years, I would cross the street to avoid getting too close to a Black man I didn’t know just like today I try to avoid a homeless person or someone who seems to be on drugs. Through an uncomfortable discussion, a friend of mine revealed to me that he notices when people do that to him. And it is hurtful. Freddie Gray, as a complex person, was dealt a disproportionate number of ‘bad cards’, but society only saw him in the most simplest of terms: a Black man.

Truth Leads to True Understanding

Notice that isolated bits of single data points do not tell the whole story. Real truth, versus perceived truth, is uncovered when multiple facts are seen in relation to each other. That is how we gain knowledge, or true understanding. It takes time and hard work to find the real truths. Some of these truths are revealed in Terry’ Gross’ interview.

“Author Wes Moore chronicles the uprising that occurred in Baltimore following Gray’s death in his new book, Five Days: The Fiery Reckoning of an American City. He says that in addition to addressing inequitable policing that occurs in poor and black neighborhoods, ‘we also have to deal with the underlying conditions that our citizens, and oftentimes our citizens of color, are repeatedly being … forced to endure.’”

“The author says that Gray’s life and death illustrate the ways in which people of color are constrained by poverty, racism and systemic injustice.”

To refresh our memories, Freddie Gray died Apr 12, 2015. His crime was making eye contact with the police and running. He was caught and ‘officially’ arrested for possessing a pocket knife they found that was larger than the legal size. His ankles were shackled and he was put into a police van with no seat belt. By the end of the ride he fell into a coma and he was taken to the hospital. He underwent surgery for three broken vertebrae and a broken voice box; he was declared dead after a week.

Protests and fires broke out in response to this tragedy. There was anger over Freddie Gray’s death, but more fuel to the flame was the lack of accountability for the police actions. When Maryland’s State Attorney at the time announced there would be charges filed against the officers, protests were canceled once the hope of accountability entered the equation. The outcome was zero convictions of the six officers involved.

Wes Moore claims the very visible physical damage of the protests five years ago is no different than the damage caused by the pain and shock of Martin Luther King, Jr’s death, nor is it discernible from the ruined remains of dilapidated buildings caused by societal neglect in areas stricken by poverty. He also distinguishes the plight of psychological damage that has manifested itself as increasing levels of violence and homicides in Baltimore with a direct relationship to increasing levels of mistrust amongst elected officials.

Facts Point to Systemic Racism

Without the protests, the world would have otherwise ignored and forgotten Freddie Gray. The recent killing of George Floyd has again inspired protests across the U.S. and now around the world. Why hasn’t there been any progress made? The systemic inequities are still in place.

To overcome these systemic inequities, Wes Moore believes we need to be intentional in re-structuring our society, and that we must be as aggressive as the system(s) that perpetuate injustice.

“The justice that’s also being sought must be an economic justice. It must be health justice. It must be housing justice,” Moore says. “If we permit these tragedies to recede from our memory, we will risk the opportunity to change the systems that are ultimately responsible for all of these injustices.”

Most news mediums only cover the facts about how someone had died. Wes Moore took the time to gather the facts on Freddie Gray’s life:

“Freddie Gray was born months premature, born underweight, born addicted to heroin,” Moore says. “His mother never made it to high school and had battled addiction much of her life. When Freddie Gray finally gained enough weight to be able to leave the hospital, he and his twin sister, they moved into a housing project in…West Baltimore. In 2009, that house, along with 400 others, were involved in a civil suit because of the endemic levels of lead that was inside that house.” (From Freddie Gray To George Floyd: Wes Moore Says It’s Time To ‘Change The Systems’, Jun 3, 2020)

According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), “Childhood lead poisoning is a multi-faceted, complex condition, which affects not only the child’s health and well-being, but also the family’s housing security, economic status, job security, and stress level.” (An Update on Childhood Lead Poisoning, Sep 2017)

Young children are more likely to have elevated Blood Lead Levels (BLL) and are:

“ more susceptible to toxic effects than are adults because of direct entry of lead into a developing nervous system. Studies of children with higher BLLs have consistently demonstrated lower IQ scores,1,34,35 more language difficulties,36 learning disorders, attention problems,37 and behavioral issues.38,39”

“While BLLs have decreased in all children over the past 30 years, disparities in who has elevated BLLs persist, disproportionately impacting vulnerable groups, such as immigrant children, low-income families, and young children from ethnic and racial minorities, based on age, socioeconomic, occupational, developmental and cultural risk factors.40–44”

The table below shows the effects of lead in people by various levels. It is important to note that Freddie Gray had a BLL of 36.

Consider now that we have more facts, or truths, about Freddie Gray. Do we as a society still believe that POC just need to work harder to be better citizens, avoid prison, and benefit from the freedoms of our country?

How much money are wealthy investors making from the COVID-19 stimulus packages? How many wealthy leaders of our nation benefit from privileged information and access to bank loans, stocks, and healthcare? How many arrests have been made among our privileged leaders for lying (under oath or through manipulating media) and stealing (indirectly through filing bankruptcy or avoiding taxes through fancy clauses for charities, gifts, and property classifications)? How many arrests were made among POC for looting (paper towels, TVs, and food), evading child support or unable to pay-off small fines? Are crimes of greed less horrific than crimes of desperation?

Wes Moore poignantly asks, “How does working harder allow someone in poverty to get out? No data supports this. There are working poor still living in poverty.”

My Truth

I have a son who was born five weeks premature. He had more frequent well-baby visits his first year of life; he would experience some mild developmental delays in speech, walking, and fine motor skills (which affects reading and writing) but ‘caught up’ by age 5 (Kindergarten). Even so, we still spent thousands of dollars on Occupational and Speech Therapy. As a stay-at-home mother, I was able to advocate for covered treatment from health insurance which required a lot of time, money, research and persistence to get him the appropriate level of care.

When did Freddie Gray ever get a break? Did he ever get a chance to ‘catch up’ once he left the hospital NICU? Did his mother have the resources, education, time, healthcare, and financial means to advocate for her son?

I am not ‘white’, but I am privileged. As an adopted Korean American woman growing up in a ‘white’ household, I have experienced injustices and hardships in my life. But I do not have to worry about my son being killed while playing with a toy gun, pocket knife, or jogging down our street. He will most likely not be falsely accused of stealing a bike, followed for the color of his skin, or arrested for looking someone in the eye.

I do struggle with finding my voice, using the right language, and taking the right actions. I am writing to practice using my voice to express my truth and others’ truths that normally are not heard. It is my hope that through human connection and pursuing the facts, we will be able to undergo societal shifts as better decisions by people will lead to the design of better systems that benefit all people.

What can we do?