24. On the Basis of Dignity

Dr. Laura Roberts is joined by Ezra Griffith, M.D., Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine and recipient of the 2023 Chester Pierce Human Rights Award, to discuss his book Race and Excellence: My Dialogue with Chester Pierce, the culmination of his personal and professional relationship with Pierce, (1927 – 2016) a tenured professor of education and psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, the first African-American full professor at Massachusetts General Hospital, and past-president of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and the American Orthopsychiatric Association. Pierce was a fellow in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a senior consultant for the acclaimed educational children's television series Sesame Street and coined then developed the term "microaggression". In the first of two episodes in the company of Ezra Griffith, he discusses the life of the pioneering psychiatrist Pierce, and explores his legacy. In this episode: Introduction (0:41) Why the book had to be put together (3:41) “Who was Chester Pierce to you?” (7:07) How Ezra came to speak regularly with Chester (9:23) The notion of dignity (12:45) Leadership (17:05) On microaggressions (19:00) Contribution by, and legacy of, Chester Pierce (29:43) Show Notes and Resources:Race and Excellence: My Dialogue with Chester Pierce by Ezra Griffith (American Psychiatric Association Publishing) 2023 Learn more about Dr. Ezra Griffith. Transcript and More Episodes: https://psychiatryonline.org/psychiatry-unbound