June 2023 marks our last message to the department as interim chairs for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). It has been a wonderful year in this role, and we appreciate your support throughout it. In a few weeks, Benjamin Mba, MBBS, MRCP (UK), CHCQM, FACP, will join the leadership team to head the DEI efforts for the department and the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Internal Medicine (ODEIM), along with serving as Graduate Medical Education Director (GME) of DEI for Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH) and Yale School of Medicine (YSM). We will collaborate to ensure a smooth transition.
June commemorates Pride Month. Yale’s Office of LGBTQ Resources released a newsletter detailing the Pride events locally and nationally. For events in Connecticut, Visit CT compiled a list on their website, along with CT Insider’s recent story, “Connecticut Pride festivals for 2023 planned across the state.” While there is much to celebrate, as with many civil rights struggles, although much has been gained since the Stonewall Inn Uprising 54 years ago, the challenge continues now as much as ever, with a record number of bills targeting LGBTQ rights in state legislatures across the country. Consider attending an event this month in support of the LGBTQIA+ community.
In addition to Pride Month, June is a busy month, filled with many secular and religious events. On June 11, the annual National Puerto Rican Day Parade was held. Billed as the “largest demonstration of cultural pride in the nation,” the parade travelled from 44th Street to 79th Street in Manhattan. More information on the event can be found on their website.
Loving Day is held on June 12. The commemoration began due to the arrest of Mildred and Richard Loving, an interracial couple who was jailed for being married. The U.S. Supreme Court heard their case in 1967, and the verdict was in favor of the Lovings on June 12, 1967. With this verdict, laws against interracial marriage were struck down. More about Loving Day can be read on the web.
Juneteenth is celebrated on the 19th of the month. This federal holiday marks the end of slavery in the United States. Yale’s African American Affinity Group will be hosting an information table at the Juneteenth New Haven event on Saturday, June 17 from 12 – 6 p.m. For more information on the free event, refer to the Calendar of Events on the Belonging at Yale website. To learn more about the various Belonging at Yale initiatives around the holiday, visit the June: Focus on Juneteenth website.
Additionally during June, Muslims commemorate an important holy day, the Hajj. Celebrated from June 26 to July 2, Muslims who are able to travel to the holy city of Mecca in an annual pilgrimage. The holiday concludes with Eid al-Adha.
If there are questions about any Department of Medicine DEI initiatives, or an issue pertaining to DEI across the department for faculty, trainees, or staff, please contact Vandana. If you are a DEI vice chief and have a question or concern, please contact Aba. For GME-related DEI questions, please contact Steve Huot.
For this month’s “Voices of DEI,” Carolina Price, MPA says “DEI brings attention to a very important element of creating a space that is reflective of the world around us.” Price values DEI because she enjoys working alongside people with different lived experiences and points of view. You can read Price's thoughts on the website and via social media. If you wish to participate as a featured voice of DEI and we welcome all to do so, please complete the survey at this link.
We are excited to partner with each of you on DEI initiatives.
Best wishes,
Vandana Khungar, MD, MSc (Interim Associate Chair for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion)
Vice Chief for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion | Digestive Diseases
Associate Professor of Medicine
Aba Black, MD, MHS (Interim Associate Chair for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion)
Vice Chief for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion | General Internal Medicine
Assistant Professor of Medicine