LET'S TALK ABOUT IT: Coronavirus Conspiracies & the Black Community
Join us for an Instagram live panel as we explore the history of conspiracy theories in the Black community and how to engage with loved ones who believe them, and consider their cultural validity.
UPDATE:
The Coronavirus Conspiracies & The Black Community panel was held on Saturday, April 11.
Please see the discussion in the video below and drop your thoughts in the comment section.
The panelists spoke about everything from healthy, constructive ways to communicate (or set boundaries) when you find yourself overwhelmed by loved ones claiming the disease is man-made or caused by 5G technology to the dark, hidden truths (Tuskegee Experiments, Black consumer exploitation) from which these misinformed, potentially harmful conspiracies often grow, many times from a place of self- and community preservation.
Note: I'm going to make my next videos more accessible with subtitles. I'd love any suggestions on software to do so.
Coronavirus Conspiracies & The Black Community
Saturday, 4/11 3-4PM EST on Instagram at @Speakpatrice
(Watch on your mobile device on the Instagram app or on your computer at www.instagram.com/speakpatrice. Here is an explainer for beginners.)
From 5G technology being the source of the COVID-19 coronavirus disease to it being a man-made virus disseminated by the U.S. federal government, conspiracy theories about the coronavirus have been growing at the same rate as the pandemic itself. This Instagram Live panel is aimed at helping viewers gain a better understanding and awareness of the culture and history of conspiracy theories specifically within the Black community and provide them with ways to proactively and constructively address conspiracies during the time of the coronavirus.
Participants:
Patrice Peck - journalist, founder of SpeakPatrice Presents: Coronavirus News for Black Folks
Patricia A. Turner - Dean and Vice Provost at UCLA College, African-American studies professor, and author of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine."
Dr. Racine Henry - licensed therapist, founder at Sankofa Marriage and Family Therapy, PLLC.
Amber Butts - a writer, organizer, grief worker, educator, and author of "Even when Black conspiracy theories are misguided, they are not nonsensical," published in Race Baitr.
Run of show (rough estimate):
3:00 - 3:05 - Patrice, waiting for a few people to join
3:05 - 3:25 - Patricia interview (scholar perspective)
3:26 - 3:46 - Dr. Racine Henry interview (therapist perspective)
3:47 - 4:05 - Amber Butts interview (community organizer + educator perspective)
A sample of questions the panelists will be addressing:
Patricia A. Turner:
What motivated you to write your book I Heard It Through the Grapevine?
So what is a conspiracy and how is it different from a myth, a rumor, urban legend or folklore?
What were major learnings from the book that are applicable to the coronavirus pandemic?
In your book you wrote, "Concerns about conspiracy, contamination, cannibalism, and castration -- perceived threats to individual black bodies, which are then translated into animosity toward the race as a whole -- run through nearly four hundred years of black contemporary legend material and prove remarkably tenacious." Can you talk about this tenacity and why you found this to be true?
In your book, you wrote, "Because black history is relatively new as an academic subject, much of the history passed down by successive generations of African-Americans is in the form of folklore." You then continue on to give an example of a person who couldn't speak directly to specific info about the KKK, but knew of that history from anecdotal accounts passed down from their grandparents, which ultimately makes their belief of modern day KKK-related theories seemingly less pathological. Could you please explain and discuss this more?
You make the case for rumors and contemporary legends functioning as tools of resistance for the folks who share them. Please talk a bit about this and when there's a case to be made for conspiracies and folklore harming or damaging the wellbeing of Black individuals and their community.
Can you talk a bit about rumor clinics and hotlines, whether they proved to be productive/constructive, and if they'd be worthwhile during the coronavirus pandemic considering the racial disparities in cases and death rates?
Dr. Racine Henry:
Can you provide some psychotherapy context on the mindset of conspiracy theorists? Is that something that's possible or is that too narrow?
Are there any potential underlying motivating factors that influence people to believe conspiracy theories?
A lot of people have been expressing frustration and helplessness about conversing with their loved ones who believe in conspiracy theories right now, specifically as they relate to the coronavirus disease and pandemic. What are some things these people should keep in mind to protect their mental health when communicating with these individuals?
Is it worth entertaining someone's conspiracy theory?
Is there anything loved ones should be on a look out for when it comes to conspiracy theorists? Does it ever get to a point where it's threatening that person's mental health?
Amber Butts:
In your article "Even when Black conspiracy theories are misguided, they are not nonsensical," you talk about how your grandmother was one of the biggest conspiracy theorists you knew. I think that's pretty prevalent in the Black community. Can you tell us a bit about your recollections of your grandma's conspiracies and the role they played on you growing up?
What conspiracies have you been hearing about coronavirus in the communities you currently work in?
You wrote in your article, "our paranoia is not a delusion." You continue on to say, "White economies have a monopoly and investment in safeguarding who gets to determine what is fact. Anything that diverts from that representation is automatically labelled fiction, hearsay and exaggeration." Could you please speak on that?
It's clear that the same racism and discrimination that led to the preexisting medial conditions that have led to these gaping health disparities fuels our skepticism in the health care system and overall government. So how do we in the Black community approach misinformation around the coronavirus, especially when historically this historical tradition of rumor and skepticism has often kept us safe and alive?
You made a clear distinction between conspiracies in the Black community being at times misinformed but not nonsensical. You wrote, "my belief in Black folks is unwavering. Doing so means holding the reality that some of our solutions and approaches are misguided, ineffective and misinformed, but they are not nonsensical." Please talk about that as it relates to the coronavirus pandemic.