Why Black Folks Say ‘No’ to Organ Donation

December 7, 2025

This article examines the deep-rooted medical mistrust among Black Americans that influences their decisions about organ donation, using personal stories to illustrate broader systemic issues. The piece focuses on Tamika Smith, a New Orleans woman who endured over a decade of medical dismissal before finally being diagnosed with endometriosis and lupus, leaving her unwilling to register as an organ donor despite maintaining regular preventative care. A Word In Black survey found that 57.

Who is affected

**Tamika Smith**, a 40-year-old New Orleans resident who experienced medical gaslighting for over a decade before being diagnosed with endometriosis and lupus
**Daniel**, Smith's teenage son who cared for his mother during her undiagnosed illness
**Rita**, Smith's mother who had endometriosis and endometrial cancer in her 20s
**Black Americans generally**, who represent roughly 30% of people waiting for kidneys despite being only 13% of the population
**Black patients** who experience racism during medical appointments (52% according to the Verywell survey)
**Justin Paige ("Cut")**, a 31-year-old artist hesitant about organ donation
**Kelsey Russell**, a 25-year-old registered organ donor and social media literacy influencer
**George Floyd**, murdered by police in 2020 when denied medical care
**NICU babies in Virginia**, brain-dead Black woman in Georgia, and Black mother in labor at Dallas Regional Medical Center—victims of 2025 medical mistreatment
**Transplant recipients and patients** in need of organs
**Healthcare workers and physicians** including Dr. Anthony Watkins and Dr. Christa Mahlobo

What action is being taken

**Dr. Anthony Watkins** is visiting churches and dialysis centers and helping non-Black colleagues address misinformation and mistrust in the Black community
**Tamika Smith** organizes a monthly community support group for those affected with chronic illness
**Kelsey Russell** spends her days teaching people how to vet information through social media literacy work and her podcast
**Lillie Williamson** is conducting research on Black Americans' perceptions of organ donation
**Word In Black's Insights & Research Division** conducted surveys (September-October) on Black adults' views on organ donation and transplantation

Why it matters

This issue matters because Black Americans face a critical health disparity: they have higher-than-average rates of chronic diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity that often lead to transplant waiting lists, yet their mistrust of the medical system—based on both historical and ongoing mistreatment—creates barriers to organ donation registration. The stakes are uniquely high for Black communities since they represent 30% of kidney transplant wait lists despite being only 13% of the population, meaning their mistrust directly impacts their own community's survival chances. The article demonstrates that this mistrust is not irrational or merely historical, but a reasonable response to contemporary systemic failures including medical gaslighting, dismissal of symptoms, and ongoing racist treatment in healthcare settings. Understanding that mistrust is rooted in lived experience rather than misinformation alone is crucial because it shifts the responsibility for change from individuals to institutions, requiring comprehensive reform of healthcare systems, increased workforce diversity, and acknowledgment of present-day harm rather than dismissing concerns as outdated. The intersection of medical mistrust with other forms of systemic oppression (policing, housing discrimination, food deserts) creates compounding effects that impact health outcomes across multiple dimensions of Black American life.

What's next

No explicit next steps stated in the article

Read full article from source: Michigan Chronicle