Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire former New York City mayor, has once again demonstrated his commitment to equality and social justice. Through his Bloomberg Philanthropies, he announced a monumental $600 million donation to four historically Black medical schools in the United States. This follows his Greenwood Initiative’s $100 million gift in September 2020, aimed at reducing student debt for these institutions.
Other major donors have also made significant contributions to HBCUs. MacKenzie Scott, the former wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has donated over $500 million to HBCUs since their divorce. The Lilly Endowment announced a $100 million gift to the United Negro College Fund, and the billionaire couple Ronda Stryker and William Johnston donated $100 million to Spelman College. Additionally, Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings and his wife, Patty Quillin, contributed $120 million.
These donations are crucial lifelines for HBCUs, which today are grappling with severe funding shortages more than ever before. Despite being heavily reliant on government funding, these schools typically receive far less financial support than other institutions. Last year, the federal government notified sixteen states that they had illegally underfunded Black colleges for decades, with the cumulative toll approaching $13 billion, according to the Biden administration.
In recent years, America has witnessed a troubling regression in civil rights and social justice, with political and policy battles often resembling a zero-sum game of “us” versus “them.” Recent challenges to affirmative action aim to dismantle policies promoting diversity and equal opportunity in education and employment. Simultaneously, numerous states are enacting laws that restrict voting rights, disproportionately affecting minority communities and undermining decades of progress toward fair access to the ballot box.
Efforts to limit the teaching of Black history in many conservative-leaning states by conflating it with critical race theory further erode hard-fought gains in civil rights and equality.
Despite their small endowments, historically Black medical schools are significant engines of social mobility for their graduates and vital contributors to public health in underserved communities. There used to be seven historically Black medical schools in the United States, but the Flexner Report of 1910 advocated for closing all but two, citing funding shortages resulting in staffing and other issues. Only Howard University College of Medicine and Meharry Medical College remained open.
Today, only about 5 percent of U.S. doctors are Black, but HBCUs play an outsized role in their education. Graduates of HBCUs account for half of the country’s Black doctors, who are more likely than their peers to practice in medically underserved communities of color. The critical question remains: why should there be schools that cater specifically to Black students and not others? Perhaps, a historical perspective may offer some insight.
In 1837, James McCune Smith became the first Black American to receive a medical degree, achieving this milestone not in any U.S. university but at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. Despite applying to several medical schools in the United States, racist admissions practices barred him from acceptance. For a century after the abolition of slavery in 1865, almost all Southern colleges and universities prohibited African Americans from attending, as mandated by Jim Crow laws. While conditions were somewhat better in other parts of the country, quotas often limited Black admissions.
The Morrill Act of 1890 was a game changer, requiring states to establish separate land-grant institutions for Black students in the former Confederate states, leading to the founding of many public HBCUs. These institutions receive federal funds to support teaching and research, serving underserved communities.
HBCUs were established out of necessity to provide educational opportunities to freed slaves and their descendants in the face of systemic exclusion and discrimination. From their origins in the pre-Civil War era through the challenges of Reconstruction, segregation, and the Civil Rights Movement, HBCUs have been instrumental in advancing the education and empowerment of Black Americans.
They remain essential institutions in American higher education, producing a significant percentage of Black professionals, including doctors, engineers, and educators.
Helping vulnerable populations is crucial for any nation, as it improves public health, reduces poverty, and lowers crime rates. By investing in education, health care, and purposeful social programs, a nation fosters a healthier, more productive, and safer society, ultimately benefiting everyone.
Mayor Bloomberg and others like him recognize that the lasting impact of over 400 years of slavery cannot be erased overnight. However, their efforts to build a more inclusive society, where people of every race and background have a fair shot at life, are not just highly commendable but very necessary. These philanthropic actions benefit all of humanity.
Osmund Agbo is a pulmonary physician.
