• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
BlackDoctor.org
Where Wellness & Culture Connect

Where Wellness & Culture Connect

  • Health Conditions
  • Wellness
  • Lifestyle
  • Longevity
  • Resource Centers
    • Clinical Trials Resource Center
    • Wellness on the Yard
    • Cancer Resource Center
    • Immunocompromised Care
    • Top Blacks in Healthcare
  • Find A Doctor
  • BDO TV
Home / Health Conditions / Sickle Cell Disease / Black Blood Donors: 3 Ways Your Blood Can Save a Life

Black Blood Donors: 3 Ways Your Blood Can Save a Life

winter season

The United States’ lengthy medical history of malpractice and discrimination against Black women is a profound and widely-known truth in our community. The narrative is clear: poked, prodded, killed. Something drilled into our collective psyche from a young age. I, like many, grew up reading books about women like Henrietta Lacks, listening to my grandmother’s and mother’s testimonies and experienced firsthand my own medical horror story with a former gynecologist. Needless to say, I empathize with those that hold warranted disdain for the healthcare system; yet it’s pivotal that each and every one of us donates a pint of our blood once a year. Our blood holds magical properties for those living with sickle cell anemia, which directly impacts our community and children. Donating black blood saves and enriches another Black life. Therefore, I encourage you, reader, to donate your blood at least once a year for the rest of your life. I dare you to save a life. 

The American Red Cross first started segregating blood in 1942. As a result, many civil rights organizations boycotted blood donation altogether (American Red Cross, 2023). Six years later the American Red Cross determined that there was no scientific reason to segregate blood, but they forever hindered the relationship between blood donation practices and the Black community.

Recent studies corroborate and quantify the lasting impacts of segregation on modern Black blood donation. In a study that took place in 2019, they concluded that Black Americans only make up 12.7% of those who are blood donors. While the exact percentage of Black women who make up that number is unknown, we can approximate that about half, or 6.35% were women.

RELATED: 9 Things Blacks Need to Know About Donating Blood

Knowing that Black Americans make up a mere 13% of the population, the number of Black female blood donors in the United States is minuscule. These numbers are discouraging, especially since research shows that Black blood has astounding effects on those living with sickled red blood cells, and the research initiatives surrounding it.

You May Also Like
9 Foods You Should NEVER Eat after Age 30

A majority of the over 100,000 people living with sickle cell anemia in the United States are Black. Recent research has shown that “blood donors of African descent are more likely to have proteins on their red blood cells that are similar to the proteins on the red cell membrane of sickle cell [anemia] patients”.

Therefore, when Black blood is donated, fewer sickle cell anemia patients have to return to the hospital after transfusion; for the likelihood of breakdown from transfused blood cells decreases. This results in fewer painful hospital visits for patients.

When more Black blood is donated, especially to sickle cell anemia initiatives, the rate of blood rejection amongst patients with sickle cell decreases. However, the question still lies, How can we encourage Black women, a sisterhood plagued by medical malpractice, to donate their life-saving blood? 

Dr. A Kyle Mack, a pediatric hematologist at Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago Illinois, has been diligently trying to encourage and create accessible ways for the Black community to participate in blood donations. Through spreading his message at churches on the South Side of Chicago, working with well-connected sororities and fraternities in the community, and donating blood himself, Dr. Mack has left no stone unturned in his initiative to spread awareness and influence people to donate.

You May Also Like
Learn About Merck's Research Studies For Patients With Kidney Cancer

Through his initiatives I’ve learned, the best way to encourage Black people, specifically women, to donate blood, is to

Continue Reading

The Latest In Sickle Cell Disease

sickle cell

How Sickle Cell Affects Hearing and Balance

In 2018, Dr. Dawn Nelson took the stage as the keynote speaker at the annual Charles F. Whitten Memorial Lecture to address a packed crowd about the prevalence of dizziness, falling and hearing loss in people living with sickle cell read more about How Sickle Cell Affects Hearing and Balance
b12 benefits

5 Incredible Reasons to Start Taking B12

Today, it feels like we require more energy! We’re tired! Some of us are married, parents, singles, professionals, working adults, and stay-at-home leaders. Whatever our titles, we all need balance to keep us going in this energy-inducing life. As a read more about 5 Incredible Reasons to Start Taking B12
sickle cell warrior

My Story as a Doctor & Sickle Cell Warrior: “We Are Resilient”

We often hear early diagnosis is the key to getting effective treatment and improving prognosis. But what happens when the timing of your diagnosis is out of your control? Newborn screening for both sickle cell disease and sickle cell trait read more about My Story as a Doctor & Sickle Cell Warrior: “We Are Resilient”
sickle cell

My Story: “I Have Sickle Cell, Sickle Cell Doesn’t Have Me!”

In her 20s, Kamaya Hoskins should be finishing college, having fun with her friends, and excited about all the days ahead. Instead, she's had to find a new "normal" living with sickle cell pain. "It feels like being jumped by, read more about My Story: “I Have Sickle Cell, Sickle Cell Doesn’t Have Me!”
Nikkolas Smith

Artivist Captures the Essence of Sickle Cell Warriors: “It’s a Silent Illness”

Nikkolas Smith is a widely celebrated artivist (artist and activist). Whether it’s a portrait of George Floyd, who was killed by a police officer in 2020, or a mural of the late Chadwick Boseman, who passed away in 2020 from read more about Artivist Captures the Essence of Sickle Cell Warriors: “It’s a Silent Illness”
sickle cell warrior

My Story: I Have Sickle Cell Disease and “I’m Infertile”

Teonna Woolford has always wanted six kids. Why six? “I don’t know where that number came from. I just felt like four wasn’t enough,” says Woolford, a Baltimore resident. “Six is a good number.” Woolford, 31, was born with sickle read more about My Story: I Have Sickle Cell Disease and “I’m Infertile”

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to our newsletter

Poll

Popular Posts

The 14 Different Types Of Headaches: Which One You’re Experiencing?

The 14 Different Types Of Headaches: Which One You’re Experiencing?

6 Things In Your Home That Can Cause Cancer

things that cause cancer

5 Amazing Things Salt Water Can Cure

salt water benefits

5 Exercise Moves That Never Work

exercise moves

3 Supplements You Should Be Taking Daily

daily report
Find a Culturally Sensitive Doctor

Footer

Where Wellness & Culture Connect

BDO is the world’s largest and most comprehensive online health resource specifically targeted to African Americans. BDO understands that the uniqueness of Black culture - our heritage and our traditions - plays a role in our health. BDO gives you access to innovative new approaches to the health information you need in everyday language so you can break through the disparities, gain control and live your life to its fullest.

Connect With Us

Learn More About

  • Hepatitis C
  • Diabetes
  • Sickle Cell
  • Mental Health
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Advertise With Us
  • BlackDoctor.org Advertising and Sponsorship Policy
  • Daily Vitamina
  • TBH

Copyright © 2023, BlackDoctor, Inc. All rights reserved.