'This Is A Pandemic That's Been Going On Far Longer Than The Coronavirus': Thousands Of Health Care Workers Take To The Streets In 'White Coats For Black Lives' March
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Thousands of people marched down Fifth Avenue along Central Park on Saturday to show that the people who care for us actually care.
Doctors, nurses and other health care workers took part in the "White Coats for Black Lives" march spurred by police brutality and the death of George Floyd.
"I think all of us after seeing that video felt something that was hard to bring into words," Radhika Parikh told CBS2's Nick Caloway.
So instead of talking, Parikh organized Saturday's peaceful protest.
She's a physician assistant at Mount Sinai.
"This is a pandemic that's been going on far longer than the coronavirus," she said.
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The doctors and nurses who spoke to CBS2 say they see the racial disparities in the health care system every day.
They see how minorities are more likely to get sick and have less access to care.
"That goes to underlying racism in the system, which needs total and complete change," physician Dr. Suraj Shah said.
For many, the last few months have been an emotional roller coaster, going from the front lines of a pandemic to wanting to be on the front lines of history.
"From being scared to just wanting to care for people and get them to a safe place and getting people to be safe at home, to being hurt and to being angry," physician Dr. Ify Wankwo said.
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At 7 p.m., the group stopped at Grand Army Plaza and took a knee for eight minutes and 46 seconds, the amount of time George Floyd had a police officer's knee on his neck. Eight minutes and 46 seconds that changed the world.
"I'm beyond outraged. I think that this has been obviously an ongoing issue that people just won't stand for anymore," Wankwo said.
Saturday marks the tenth night of protests across the city.