UNHEALED: A Story of Race, Memory, and a Teaching Hospital

The COVID-19 pandemic forced medical schools to reckon with their racial legacies. But what does that really mean? Is it enough to acknowledge the history of medical racism in broad strokes, or blame mistrust on notorious research scandals? Or do med... more

For nearly 40 years Maltheus Avery’s story was forgotten at Duke—until uncovered by a historian researching the death of Charles Drew, the famed African-American pioneer of blood banking. It turns out that both men died following car accidents in 195... more

Here we trace the arc of Maltheus Avery’s short life, revealing the promise of the American Dream for the Avery family and its collision with the realities of Jim Crow America. We share how his death transformed the lives of his two brothers—both of ... more

African-American newspapers propelled Avery’s story across the country, recast as a modern “no room at the inn” Christmas story set in the Jim Crow South. An unlikely band of southern radicals seized the events to launch one of the first U.S. civil r... more

Part of what made Avery’s death so tragic was that it happened at Duke University, founded by Methodists and widely regarded in that era as a forward-thinking institution. In this episode we look at how Duke’s leaders responded to criticism from all ... more

A lot has happened at Duke (and in the U.S.) since 1950—including the Civil Rights movement that marked the end of legal segregation. Why, then, did its medical campus erupt in 2020 against the continuing power of medical racism? This episode recount... more

A lot has happened at Duke (and in the U.S.) since 1950—including the Civil Rights movement that marked the end of legal segregation. Why, then, did its medical campus erupt in 2020 against the continuing power of medical racism? This episode recount... more