I'm Sorry, so sorry

Soooo a hundred and 40 something years after the end of slavery and about 50 years after the end of Jim Crow the government finally apologizes for both. See article here- http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080729/ap_on_go_co/slavery_apology

The current push for the apology came from a White Tennessee Democrat (some wonder whether he pushed the resolution to aid him in a primary he has against a formidable black opponent). Fear in the past of apologizing came from fear of having to pay reparations (which I'm on the fence about) which this new resolution mentions nothing of. Yet, Congress did not fear apologizing to the Japanese for their time in internment camps or the Hawaiians for overthrowing their ruler in the late 1800's.

It's always nice to receive an apology and some feel this is just another step towards racial tolerance in our country. But...I'm not so convinced this will do anything. Maybe it's just the pessimist in me. A little acknowledgement to the injustice put upon African Americans in this country is welcomed but actions speak louder than words. But it's notable.

Meanwhile my friend put me on to an upsetting headline from CNN (who I am at times convinced is not black people friendly no matter how many correspondence of color they have, although I exclude Anderson Cooper from this)
1 out of 2 with HIV in U.S. is black, report says
http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/conditions/07/29/black.aids.report/index.html

Okay, so my friends and I had the gripe of how this title is provacative and how many people will interpret it as a black only disease or use t to sterotype. The media loves to sensationalize things. Now, I'm not saying there is no truth to it but there is a more tactful way to address something that will have people focus on the issue and how to resolve it(which is use some protection people or keep your legs closed- what's the problem!) rather than have people too pissed at the title and the way the matter is presented to focus on the real problem.

You read that title too fast and it makes you believe that one out of two Blacks has HIV. Read the report and it makes it appear that AIDS is a black disease which is a bunch of bull. It affects black women between the ages of 24-36 at an alarming rate, comparable to that of third world countries. Frightening. But how misleading could this report be?

I really wish the media and the health community would show how narrow their studies are. This disease isn't affecting all blacks at a high rate. It is a affecting a subset of blacks at a larger rate (drug addicts, incarcerated, lower socioeconomic backgrounds). Why not make sure that is mentioned?

My issue, to go off on a tangent, is that sometimes doctors think they know my medical history/future based on my race. I'm black therefore I will have diabetes, hypertension etc. But is it more accurate to access my lifestyle first instead of assuming I am living a certain lifestyle that would put me at risk for those illnesses simply becaue I'm black?

Acknowledging race in health is important, we want to make sure we get the appropriate test and aren't ignored simply because a certain illness doesn't affect whites, but at the same time we don't want to be penalized either. So to my doctor- when you ask me about my diet and I tell you I don't eat white breads, fried food all the time , didn't grow up on kool aid and high sugar drinks and don't munch on chitlins etc, please believe me! Don't assume that you know my diet and therefore my future health issues because I'm black! I want doctors to access my health based on me as an individual and not as a statistic for something that may not have any baring on my life style!
Get's off soap box.