Dr. Gail C. Christopher Discusses Finding Positivity while Mourning the Change In National Leaders & Priorities

One of America's leading experts on racial healing, Dr. Christopher, says it is essential to remain hopeful and be organized to meet the challenges ahead

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, January 27, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- In a lengthy interview with Chauncey Devega of Salon, Dr. Gail C. Christopher, an award-winning change agent, discusses how to manage the collective feelings of mourning, grief, fear, and overall distress that millions of Americans are experiencing following the election and inauguration of the new president.

“It is critically important to learn to manage our emotions and feelings even during the most challenging times,” says Dr. Christopher, Executive Director of the National Collaborative for Health Equity (NCHE). “I am feeling hopeful. I believe that hope can be viewed as a synonym for democracy. Democracy is about the hope that people can live their lives with freedom and to pursue happiness. Democracy is always forming; it is never complete.”

Dr. Christopher maintains that the American system of government – a constitutionally based democracy, aligns with the natural forces of life.

“Just as the human being emerges from the fertilized ovum, the creation of the possible is a natural gift and phenomenon we have been given as human beings,” she says. “There are certain principles that must be understood. Biological life like a democratic form of government is based on complexity, redundancy, modularity, robustness, resilience, communitarianism and agency. Unlike authoritarian systems, our democracy is grounded in these natural principles, and again, it is always a work in progress. I highly recommend the recent book How Life Works: A User’s Guide to the New Biology by Philip Ball. As I read it, I kept thinking about our political and social struggles for justice.”

Devega asks, “Many Americans are in a state of mourning because of Trump’s victory in the election and now his presidency and what it will mean for the future of American democracy. What exactly is being mourned?”

Responding, Dr. Christopher says, “I think it is important here to recognize that this nation has elected 47 presidents and only a small portion of them have stood for justice and fairness and yet our system of governance has enabled continued progress…I can imagine based on the tone of the campaign, the people that have been selected to lead federal agencies in the new administration, as well as the policy priorities that have been expressed that there will be efforts to shut the borders, deport undocumented immigrants, and reverse efforts for equity throughout the government agencies. These efforts or executive orders will be challenged through our legal system and met with state and local push-back. I think it is very important to remain hopeful and to be as organized as we possibly can to meet the challenges ahead.”

Further, Devega asks, “What is healthy mourning for an individual? For a collective and/or society? What is unhealthy mourning and grieving?”

Dr. Christopher asserts that whenever people experience loss, either real or perceived, it can trigger negative emotions of fear and/or helplessness.

“There is considerable research that documents the harmful health effects of negative emotions,” she says. “Chronic states of anxiety and stress are associated with many of the debilitating chronic diseases that disproportionately affect communities of color. Hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, neurodegenerative conditions and inflammatory conditions are all associated with high-stress levels.

“An emerging and well-researched body of literature focuses on the health benefits of positive emotions. Healthy mourning includes a balance of positive thoughts to trigger positive emotions despite the temporary experience of loss. This requires meditation. Music can be helpful, and most importantly, positive social engagement with family or friends. In this moment of political loss, self-care in the ways I described above must be augmented with actual engagement in concrete activities that are working toward a better future. Community organizing, legal defense funds, voter registration, and activism of many types will help create a more positive mental and emotional state. These circle experiences may help to ease the sense of loss and replace it with hope and deeper, more meaningful human connections.”

Devega notes that Donald Trump became president of the United States for a second time on the holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He asks Dr. Christopher, “Channeling Brother King,” Where does the nation go from here?

“We gain the strength and inspiration to move forward by better understanding the progress that has been made in the 20th and early decades of the 21st century,” Dr. Christopher says. “Ending slavery was a 100-year struggle. It took another 50 years to end Jim Crow. I highly recommend the book, "Waging a Good War: A Military History of The Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1968" by Thomas E. Ricks. The author, a war journalist, draws from his understanding of strategy to instruct the reader about what I view as the complexity, redundancy, modularity, robustness, resilience, communitarianism, and agency that were employed to achieve victory during the Civil Rights Movement era.”

The full interview is presented in parts one and two on Salon.

(For broadcast or print interviews with Dr. Christopher, please contact Michael K. Frisby at Mike@frisbyassociates.com or 202-625-4328.)

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Dr. Gail C. Christopher, the Executive Director of the National Collaborative for Health Equity, is also a Senior Scholar at the Center for Advancement of Well-Being at George Mason University and a former Senior Advisor and Vice President of the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. She led the development and launch of Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) at the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. Her new book is RX-Racial Healing: A Guide to Embracing Our Humanity.

About NCHE
Founded in 2014, NCHE (https://www.nationalcollaborative.org/) was established to promote health equity through action, leadership, inclusion, and collaboration. NCHE works to create environments that foster the best possible health outcomes for all populations, regardless of race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or nativity. NCHE also works to improve conditions for health and well-being, including housing, education, income and wealth, and the physical and social environment. Further, NCHE believes that it is imperative that we address historical and contemporary structural, institutional, and interpersonal racism, which fuels inequities in our society.

Michael K. Frisby
Frisby & Associates
+1 202-625-4328
mike@frisbyassociates.com
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