Last week, the NYT published “Who is the Bad Art Friend?,” a story that caused quite a bit of controversy. I wrote a piece for @Slate about one aspect of the debate: whether living kidney donors should share their stories. The answer is YES. slate.com/technology/202…
Now, I want to be clear: Bad Art Friend is a complicated story. I'm not taking a side, here. What I care about is this small sliver of the story, combined with the tone of some of the responses. I care about kidneys. I care about kidney patients. That’s what I want to talk about.
~100,000 Americans languish on the kidney waitlist, many dying every month. What makes this shortage so tragic is that it doesn’t NEED to be a shortage. Kidneys aren’t like other organs. You can donate, save a life, & live a long & happy life yourself slate.com/technology/202…
35,000 people get added to the waitlist every year. That means we just need 35,000 kidney donors per year to meet that demand. But we don't have that many donors--even deceased ones! So kidney patients have to beg for these life-saving organs on their cars slate.com/technology/202… 
Kidney donation isn’t for everyone. People have to be financially secure, healthy, & psychologically predisposed. It’s ok to not want to be cut open & give up an organ. But the fact of the matter is there ARE people who would be inclined to donate if they knew more about it.
This is why we need donors to tell their stories. They can reassure others about the process. They can also inspire others about the satisfaction of using a piece of yourself to save another life. If donors are silent, the kidney shortage will get worse. slate.com/technology/202…
Donations from strangers—non-directed donors—serve many important purposes. They not only save lives, but they also relieve pressure from kidney patients' family members who may not be not as financially secure or healthy, but feel compelled to donate to save their loved one.
Some other facts:
-Women are more likely to give to a family member than men are. More non-directed donor kidneys could help resolve this inequity
- Black Americans suffer more than anyone else from the kidney crisis, which I wrote about more here: alternet.org/2021/04/george…
-Women are more likely to give to a family member than men are. More non-directed donor kidneys could help resolve this inequity
- Black Americans suffer more than anyone else from the kidney crisis, which I wrote about more here: alternet.org/2021/04/george…
The kidney crisis is so tragic b/c it is fixable. Again, donation isn’t for everyone. But certainly there are enough Americans who would be willing to give if they were reassured & inspired. This is why kidney foundations WANT donors to tell their stories. slate.com/technology/202…
Again, “Bad Art Friend” raised a lot of different questions. The only one I am addressing here is whether kidney donors should be silent martyrs. They should not be. In fact, their stories and even their *pride* could help save many more lives. slate.com/technology/202…
1 other thing: Many donors are already hesitant to share their stories. I remembered, as I was writing this story, that the 1st time I met a living kidney donor, I wondered (to my shame) "Is he a weirdo? Why would he do that?" I feel quite differently now slate.com/technology/202…
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
