Despite what you may have heard, there’s no such thing as “Latinx Heritage Month”
The terms Hispanic and Latino/a/x are not interchangeable: there are substantive domestic policy (Census counts, redistricting) and foreign policy (immigration, aide) differences
In addition to the substantive policy implications, there's a nuance to the use of the two terms that is lost on most on #here:
🔸“Hispanic" acknowledges colonialism at the expense of LGBTQ+ inclusivity
🔸”Latinx” is LGBTQ+ inclusive at the expense of historical erasure
I get that it’s confusing to keep track of all these terms. When you’re speaking with an individual or group, it’s *generally* ok to *reflect back* the term they’re using to self-identify. An obvious exception: misappropriating a national month of recognition.
TL;DR: unless you mean to exclude persons of Caribbean and Filipino descent (among others), don't take it upon yourself to re-name “Hispanic Heritage Month” to “Latinx Heritage Month”
Addendum: there’s nothing woke about using “Latinx” incorrectly, and 99.9% of non-Latinx folks (+25% of Latinx) are using it incorrectly
How/when do Latinx folks use the term “Latinx” incorrectly?
Lots of ways, but most commonly: assuming it applies to persons of Caribbean descent— that’s not necessarily true, and, even when it *might*, the use of the term Latinx obfuscates or misappropriates the African diaspora
Recognizing the unique history of *each* Caribbean nation is important to understanding how foreign policy decisions have led to things like a humanitarian crisis in Haiti that has prompted mass emigration.
And while we’re on the topic: let’s not forget that much of the Caribbean was inhabited by Indigenous communities. The term “Latinx” completely overlooks this fact, too
TL; DR (this time for real): It’s *Hispanic* Heritage Month, and don’t use the term “Latinx” if you’re not Latinx unless you really, really mean it
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Dear medical influencers: if you’re tired of wearing a mask, the most productive thing you could do is to become a vocal supporter of vaccination requirements for all eligible persons.
Also, spend some time *objectively* reviewing data from other parts of the world.
2/ Yesterday, I wrote a thread urging everyone to scrutinize policy that perpetuates and/or magnifies systemic racism— relaxing mask mandates before all kids are eligible to get vaccinated is just that
3/ As KFF data shows, BIPOC kids would bear a disproportionately high burden of diseases in the event of a COVID-19 winter resurgence 👀⤵️
Folks reacting to this that are not pediatricians:
🔸Off-label use in pediatrics is quite common, but not with vaccines
🔸Off-label usage would *allow* but not *require* parents of younger kids to get them vaccinated
🔸Work toward an FDA EUA is ongoing, this doesn’t change that
Hearing from some Pediatricians via QTs and DMs: so far, the “nays” have it. Specific reasons center around wanting to see the data for 5-11 year olds.
In August 2020, I tried to explain to a Harvard prof how his policy position on rapid testing for COVID-19 worsened racial inequities. I asked him, “Do you agree that racism is a public health crisis?” His response was, “I feel like this is a trick question.”
In Dec. 2020, a Broad Institute prof asked for data & analytical support for a New England Journal of Medicine piece
She reversed course when asked to include “a line about the need for federal funding to address the need for family leave, housing assistance, and childcare.”👀⤵️
In May 2020, a Harvard prof co-wrote a health disparities paper *based almost entirely* on data our team collected. Before publication I alerted him to flaws in his interpretation of our data— he never replied. He’s also behind the systemically flawed vaccines.gov👀⤵️
I really love the organizations that follow me seemingly for the express purpose of repackaging my posts re: vaccine inequities into press releases to remain relevant and justify their funding.
I appreciate how they bastardize the upshot in ways that undermine my policy position
The racial and ethnic gap in COVID-19 vaccination *is* closing, but we can’t say *why* using *any* public data source because we’re not collecting the right data.
The most we can say on the topic based on public data has already been said 👀⤵️
I recognize that this is a public forum, and that what I post here is fair game. That said, if you’re going to pick my brain on the topic to gather the information you need to reproduce the conclusions, the least you could do is refrain from taking a contrarian policy position
School-linked cases in #LAUSD decreased significantly between Sept. 26 (11 cases) and Oct. 4 (1 case). The timing is important: it is ~3 weeks after the district mandated vaccinations for all eligible students.
If you’re ever looking for proof that there’s an East Coast media bias, I humbly submit the TLs of the plurality of Boston- and New York-based journalists, analysts, and influencers
(Compare and contrast to the TLs of folks based out of anywhere else in the country)