USA Africa Dialogue Series - From Ms. Joe to the Community: Why I Cry, The Community is Marginalized.

Montgomery County, Maryland and Elsewhere

Africans:

 

The response to the public official (after my mail) is what can be said for the other jurisdictions. I would rather say it as it is:  The Continental African population is growing with an expanding voter and tax payer base but without equitable, public resources that other New American populations have. It is unfair. The cities and counties  can tell  how many businesses were created, received resources; how many are in public sector employment in these populations and their health programs are funded. Nobody knows the data for the African community. Civil rights gained cannot  be selectively denied and disguised. It is not the job of a  government agency to operate skin color subjugation in order to justify why competent African service providers are being marginalized and their collective intelligence insulted. It is unfair.

 

I do not ask for a personal favor, a position or  contract from politicians, neither will I compromise my  independence by doing so or entertain a conflict of interest.  I use my own money for community organizing, to advocate and  conduct research and I do not get paid. I don't want to be paid. It is about  community first.  After working to establish to establish the DC Mayor's Office in African Affairs in 2005/06, in  2007/8 a cross-section of us put together a comprehensive Needs Assessment and Recommendation Report, and one of the Recommendations resulted in the creation of the African Advisory Group in Montgomery County and Liaison Office. So where is the change and  how is the change measured? It is a fair question.

 

The only indigenous cancer program serving African women, the African Women Cancer Awareness Association, was de-funded.Yet our grandmas  who use indigenous services are dying.  But the government funds groups that are hardly known in the community to address African issues when willing and able African groups are more effective and efficient.Why would competent African groups be de-funded or not funded but the government gives monies to other groups to help Africans? Does this make any sense? What  does the 74 year old grandma diagnosed with cancer do? Assimilate to fit into the agency's scope of  skin  color thinking? How many people in the community, including more vulnerable grandpas and grandpas, have heard of the program that the official is taking about?

 

I have deleted the official's address and name because the purpose is not to create unnecessary discord but to shed light on a germane, public health issue.  The health groups got the mail and they need to meet with the Council member. Prince George's and elsewhere are no better. I have to make it known to the politicians what I believe in and what people in the community think. My purpose is not to 'be nice, liked to be accepted, appointed or invited" when my  community is not treated fairly. I am not interested in all that, never shall. We just want to know  how and why the HHS and other agencies make policies and how the African community gets its fair share. It also has to do with the conscience or expedience of  government. Fair is fair.

 

Thanks for reading and have a blessed day.

MsJoe

 

 

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 From: MsJoe21St@aol.com
To: Councilmember
CC: Staff@montgomerycountymd.gov
Sent: 9/14/2013 11:26:12 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time
Subj: Re: Demand answers from the Mrs. Uhluwalia and HHA/ Uncooperative group

 

Hello Councilman:

 

While it is the responsibility of the African community groups to collaborate  in order to effectively serve constituents, the fact that Montgomery County HHS is using color of the skin to make decisions to fund the African American Health  Program  undermines the African community in Montgomery county and, by implication, the public health of the county.  Elderly  grandparents are slowly dying when diagnosed but do not qualify for services,  the uninsured are helpless, it is the unfunded African mutual aid associations and social networks who are reaching these hard-to-reach populations.

 

I do not run a health program nor seek to do so. I do not need any grant. I speak for the competent groups that can run programs and efficiently so. I see them struggling. Sometimes I cannot help but cry when a patient is more responsive to the culturally relevant, developmentally appropriate  and linguistic specific service of an African organization,  yet the services  do not have bare necessitates and volunteers are using their own money to take patients to health appointments.

 

I am appealing to the African groups to work together to reduce some of the crisis.  A substantial gap in service is addressed by Latinos groups, especially  La Casa, not African American groups. Councilman, it is not easy to look into the eyes of the dying and say...you have use the African American Health program when the person knows nothing about African American culture. Some naturally stare blank and ask why, some are afraid of the unknown or baffled by laws and red tapes.

 

With a growing population comes attendant woes. Today, Continental Africans are  experiencing deaths just like any population; diagnoses caught at late stages,  corpses are being sent back home to Africa and most are citizens of this country and residents of the County.  If we are saying that the Continental African population should be treated differently, unlike other transnational, New American  communities like the Latinos, Asians and Jews receive funds these groups to provide heath and human services to their populations, it is unfair.

 

Let us even look even at the Council and County Executive Grants and the unfairness is stunning. Same thing with the Arts and Humanities Council.

 

The black Latinos and dark skinned Asians are not expected to use the African American program. The HHS blackness policies seems to apply only on the African community, which is influenced by immigrant orientations and  most of the members do not use the African American Health Program as their primary source for Health and Human Service information in Montgomery County. 

 

Councilman, I am  just stating the frequent and prevailing questions in the community. If I do not reflect the views, I would not be an honest person to myself, you or the community. Others may play safe or coy for any favor but that is not my style.  It has been demonstrated that the African and African American  communities share very little in common in terms of socio-cultural orientations, especially on behaviors that affect health.  Dr. Bola Idowu  privately admits the fact. She also knows the African American Health program has no presence or influence in the African community.  So what is the purpose of prioritizing the African American health program to serve as a Community Health Navigator?

 

At the HHS discussions, false presentations were made to give a wrong notion that the African American Health Program works with African health groups like African Women Cancer Awareness Association (AWCA). That was an unnecessary lie. I checked it out. The last time the African Americans had contact with AWCA was in 2007. If the African health and human service groups were allowed to speak, the picture could have been clearer. They came and left disgusted and perhaps humiliated by the "African American Show" that had little bearing on realities on the ground. 

 

The US HHS and Office of Minority Health had an outreach meeting with the African community  on Obamacare and a Community Health Navigator was explicitly suggested. 

 

 My appeal to the African groups is to  work together because they are better able to understand the needs. If the County does not want to support the African community  in face of good evidence, let that be plainly and publicly known. But is not fair to fund a group called Beta that runs the African American Health Program, which has no presence in the African community, and believe the African community is being served.  Let the funded African American Health Navigator provide the data and it can be compared with the data of the unfunded African health and human service groups. It would be clearer who is reaching the population.

 

Councilman, we submitted a comprehensive Needs Assessment and Recommendation Report to the Leggett Administration. One of the outcomes was the  practical distinction between  African Africans and African communities, which resulted in the African Affairs Advisory  Group. It is evident that the African American Health Program is largely unknown in the general African community. 

 

The community knows the decision to subjugate a growing population in order not to fund its services is not fair. We are working to get the African health and human service groups to develop a common health agenda and a Community Health Navigator.  The service providers would have meet with the Leggett Administration to review how the community is being served based on the Recommendations it received . Currently, Montgomery County is unfair to the African community in terms of equitable services that empower a community.

 

 

Best,

Evelyn

 

 

 

In a message dated 9/14/2013 7:51:00 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, Councilmember writes:

Dear Evelyn,

As you know, the African American Health Program does provide community health navigators working specifically with the African immigrant community.

All the best
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