Praise for Stand Up to Stigma
Pernessas book can make a difference in your life. In a powerful way, it gets to the heart of a complex issue. Many people stigmatize others without realizing it, and Seele helps readers understand what they can do to change their attitudes and actions.
Jeff Pegues, Justice and Homeland Security Correspondent, CBS News, and author of Black and Blue
We all dream of living in a world without stigma and bias, but a quick glance at the news proves that this is a dream deferred. Pernessa Seele pulls no punches in identifying the cost of stigma and steps to take away the power of stigma and bias.
Rev. Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson, Chairman, Conference of National Black Churches, Inc.
Dr. Pernessa Seeles tireless efforts to remove disparities in health careand wherever we need more understanding and acceptanceis nothing short of inspirational. I will gladly share this book with anyone who questions the toll that stigma takes on our human communityor the path we can take to escape it.
John Hope Bryant, Chairman, Operation HOPE
In sharing cogent reflections based upon her pioneering experiences as a courageous health advocate, Pernessa Seele squarely identifies the societal toll taken by stigma and stereotypingand delineates the steps we can take to reaffirm the dignity we each innately possess by virtue of our humanity.
Natalia Kanem, MD, Acting Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund
Dr. Seele puts a human face on the consequences of stigma, shows the need to examine our biases, and gives me the uneasy personal reminder that as a public health official and researcher, I must drive outside my lane of numbers and statistics.
Willi McFarland, MD, PhD, MPH&TM, Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, and Director, Center for Public Health Research, San Francisco Department of Public Health
The Balm In Gilead, founded by Dr. Pernessa Seele, has saved lives in the United States, Africa, and beyond. Through education, treatment, and prevention, Pernessa has enabled tens of thousands to walk the earth with health, hope, and wholeness. We are blessed to have Dr. Seeles narrative of healthcare and wellness in a wounded world.
Rev. Dr. Otis Moss Jr., international pastor, theologian, speaker, author, and activist
Stand Up to StigmaSTAND UP
TO
STIGMA
How We Reject Fear and Shame
PERNESSA C. SEELE
Stand Up to Stigma
Copyright 2017 by Pernessa C. Seele
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed Attention: Permissions Coordinator, at the address below.
| Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.
1333 Broadway, Suite 1000
Oakland, CA 94612-1921
Tel: (510) 817-2277, Fax: (510) 817-2278
www.bkconnection.com |
Ordering information for print editions
Quantity sales. Special discounts are available on quantity purchases by corporations, associations, and others. For details, contact the Special Sales Department at the Berrett-Koehler address above.
Individual sales. Berrett-Koehler publications are available through most bookstores. They can also be ordered directly from Berrett-Koehler: Tel: (800) 929-2929; Fax: (802) 864-7626; www.bkconnection.com
Orders for college textbook/course adoption use. Please contact Berrett-Koehler: Tel: (800) 929-2929; Fax: (802) 864-7626.
Orders by U.S. trade bookstores and wholesalers. Please contact Ingram Publisher Services, Tel: (800) 509-4887; Fax: (800) 838-1149; E-mail: /Ordering for details about electronic ordering.
Berrett-Koehler and the BK logo are registered trademarks of Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.
First Edition
Paperback print edition ISBN 978-1-62656-937-9
PDF e-book ISBN 978-1-62656-938-6
IDPF e-book ISBN 978-1-62656-939-3
2017-1
Cover design: Paula Goldstein.
Book interior production and design: VJB/Scribe.
Copyediting: John Pierce. Proofreader: Nancy Bell. Index: Theresa Duran.
This book is dedicated to three little boys who are growing into GREAT MEN. Each of them have moved me far away from my comfort zone in areas of stigma, fear, and shame. As I continuously watch them STAND UP to Stigma every day within their young lives, I am becoming a better human being.
I Love You Dearly!
Desmond Maurice Dease
(13 years old)
Richard Milton Smith, Jr.
(27 years old)
Darius James Dease
(41 years old)
I wish to thank Rev. Dr. Renita J. Weems for her Just a Sister Way love and support, which always flows freely and tells you just how it is straight up; and to Dr. Marsha A. Martin for her friendship and lifelong commitment and dedication to end the AIDS pandemic on planet Earth. I have been truly blessed by many great individuals over the years, who answered the call to give their time and energy to The Balm In Gilead Inc. Each of them, past and present, in their own unique way, have been the wind beneath my wings and a healing balm of courage and strength.
God Is.
Blessed are they that hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they shall be filled.
The Gospel of Matthew 5:6
CONTENTS
PREFACE
Lionel and I became dear friends in the early 1980s. I met this extraordinary, world-renown baritone through a New York City artistic magazine in which he was featured. I had just been given permission to establish the Cultural Arts Institute (CAI) within the Brooklyn Truth Center. This was a dream that I shared with my pastor at the time, The Reverend Don Nedd, who allowed me to use the space of the well-over fifteen thousand square foot church building. Over a short period of time, the CAI became a hallmark for music and dance classes, with a slate of acclaimed professional instructors. Within a few months of Lionel becoming the piano instructor, the pastor invited him to be the director of music for the Brooklyn Truth Center. With both of us living in Manhattan, we looked forward to our journey together to Brooklyn on Sunday mornings.
Over time it became very noticeable that Lionel was not well, and his condition, which he would not speak about, was worsening. All of us, including the pastor, other members, and I, became concerned about his obvious silent illness.
Lionel did not show up for choir rehearsal one Thursday night, and we all knew something was very wrong. A few choir members quickly decided to drive up to Harlem to Lionels apartment to see about him. They found him slumped over in his chair. Deceased.
