Covid-19, the NFL, and Racial Norming
Claudewell S. Thomas, MD, MPH, DLFAPA, is an established psychiatrist who is currently retired ,, He received his medical degree in 1956 at SUNY Downstate College of Medicine and specializes in social psychiatry, public health psychiatry, and forensic psychiatry. Dr. Thomas was board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry... more
As the struggle for the soul of America heats up following the enormity of January sixth and the related struggle for the physical and mental health of Americans against SARS-CoV-2 shows more than 450,000 deaths, issues such as migration, immigration, vaccine nature, and availability emerge as global issues rather than solely national concerns. The destruction of a functional CDC, the cutting of ties to WHO, the politicization of Covid reporting, and the repeated lies about the relationship between the epidemic and the world and national economies with a capstone of summoning the minions of haters, race and sex baiters, homophobes, and fools to assault the legislative branch of government on behalf of a corrupt executive branch having already corrupted the judicial branch (SCOTUS and District) has produced a banana republic sense of fear and uncertainty.
More and more of us have relied on the entertainment of sports and the small screen. The recent release of the distribution of dollars to those claiming injury from football injury particularly concussive head injury revealed the assignment of lower cognitive capabilities to nonwhite athletes resulting in a high denial of claims. Aside from the reinforcement of the unstated ideal of the rich and titled white male designing the structure within which others (women and nonwhites) can function, the saving of millions of dollars by the rich NFL owners can be assigned motivational status. Racial norming is an old practice disavowed by most neuropsychologists, psychiatrists, neurologists, neuropsychiatrists, and psychologists. It is still used in criminal law, usually to deny amelioration to handicapped lawbreakers of color. As we try to enjoy the super bowl, Covid-19 and its ramifications will be sitting with us.
