Recently, UConn School of Medicine’s Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) met with Connecticut State Senator Saud Anwar, a Pulmonary and Critical Care physician. Senator Anwar wrote a powerful and moving letter (linked here) to Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont on June 15, 2020, in the wake of the death of George Floyd, asking him to declare racism a public health emergency. Senator Anwar plans to introduce a bill within the next few weeks that would formally make this resolve and establish a Commission. Watch his recent Facebook video discussing the proposal.
To build momentum behind this bill, UConn LMSA is collaborating with UConn SNMA, UConn SNDA/HSDA, Quinnipiac LMSA, and Yale LMSA to hold a Phone-a-thon event on January 13, 2021 from 2-4:30PM on Webex. If you are interested in calling Senators/Representatives of Connecticut please RSVP by Monday, January 11, to the Phone-a-thon via this link to receive the Webex link for the event, the sign-up list for calling legislatures, and the script! UPDATE: Senator Anwar will be joining the event from 2:30-3:00 PM to talk to participants about the bill.
Remember, you can join the Webex at any point from 2-4:30pm - we’ll provide the script, you provide the phone! Whether you make one quick phone call or ten, the effects of your words can really make a difference.
Connecticut can become a leader in fighting racial inequities in public health, and you can be a part of that mission!
For more information, contact: Kelly and Elena at navedo@uchc.edu