“Woman Crush Wednesday: Dr. May Edward Chinn"

Dr. May Edward Chinn made significant contributions to medicine in both cancer diagnosis and as the ONLY woman doctor in Harlem in the 1920’s.

EARLY LIFE:

May Chinn (1896-1980) was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Her father, William Lafayette Chinn, was a light-skinned slave who escaped from the Virginia Chinn Plantation when he was only 11. (The Chinn family of Virginia was from Scotland; this was the Americanized version of their name which was either deCheyne or Chein). He made his way to Massachusetts where he found work as a stable hand.


May’s mother, Lula Ann Evans, was born on the Chickahominy Indian Reservation near Norfolk, Virginia. She was of Native American and African American descent. She, too, moved to Massachusetts and met and married William.


William had trouble staying employed, partly because he drank. He decided work would be easier to find if he, Lula Ann, and their young daughter moved to New York City. Lula Ann quickly found a job as a housekeeper and cook.
Lula Ann was determined to provide May with a good education. She saved enough money to send her young daughter to Bordentown Manual Training and Industrial School, a boarding school for black children in New Jersey. However, May developed osteomyelitis (a bone infection) and had to return to New York to be treated. She then joined her mother for her recovery. Lula Ann was then employed at the Charles Tiffany Estate in Irvington, New York.

 

LIFE WITH THE TIFFANY’S:

The Tiffany family welcomed May as a member of their family. They included May in the Tiffany children’s schooling. She took music lessons just as they did, and she attended concerts and cultural events with the family.

When patriarch Charles Tiffany died, the estate was sold. Lula Ann and May moved back to the city and rented an apartment where William joined them.

Lula Ann continued to keep a watchful eye on May’s opportunities to learn. She knew white schools received better resources, so she often uprooted the family to move to a school district where May was likely to get the best education. May also continued studying piano.

In 11^th grade, May dropped out of school and took a job tying ribbons on calendars in a factory. Her mother must have been devastated that she left school.

 

SECOND CHANCE FOR EDUCATION:

When applications were due at Columbia University Teacher’s College, a friend encouraged May to apply. Even without a high school diploma, May was accepted and entered the university in 1917 as a music major.

Paul Robeson, an aspiring opera singer at the time, was among those who admired May’s gifted piano playing. One day his accompanist did not arrive on time, and he asked May to accompany him. After that, she often played for him at his concerts in New York City.

One of the music professors at Columbia took issue with May’s race, which lessened her pleasure in some of the music classes.  In her unpublished autobiography, she wrote: “Because I was of African descent, [he said] that unless I could afford to go to Europe for final ‘polishing’ in my music, I would probably end up singing in a cabaret in America.” This was not the career May had in mind.

Fortunately, May had a well-rounded schedule of classes. In a science class, she wrote a paper about sewage disposal that caught the eye of the professor. The woman encouraged May to change her major.  May heeded the professor’s advice and decided science—eventually medicine—might offer her a brighter future.

 

MEDICAL SCHOOL:

In 1921, she graduated from college and was accepted at Bellevue Medical School. She was the FIRST African American, male or female, ever admitted! In 1926, she was hired as an intern at Harlem Hospital. This, too, was notable, because at the time Harlem Hospital primarily served white people! They had NO black doctors!

Because black doctors were not given visiting privileges at any New York area hospital, a few doctors grouped together to establish the Edgecombe Sanitarium in Harlem where they sometimes saw patients. Dr. May Chinn became their junior member. This provided her with an apartment where she and her parents lived, but it gave her the responsibility of all night calls. It was an exhausting time.

While the Sanitarium answered some needs, the doctors also found it necessary to make house calls. Sometimes they needed to perform surgery in a patient’s home. May learned to carry a small lamp from her office with her. Performing surgery on a dining table or a bed was difficult; if the lighting was poor it was all but impossible.

Because medical care was not readily accessible to the black population, Dr. Chinn saw many patients with advanced stages of cancer. She determined to try to change their prognosis.

 

HOSPITAL BENEFITS:

Since African American doctors were denied hospital visiting privileges, this not only harmed their ability to serve their patients, but it cut off their access to more education. Hospitals often sponsored seminars for doctors, and the atmosphere around a hospital also permitted informal consultations with colleagues. Without a hospital connection, May Chinn and other non-white doctors lacked these opportunities.

Chinn was determined to learn, so when one of her patients needed to be seen by a specialist, Chinn went to medical appointments with them as the family doctor. On one of these visits to a hospital clinic, she ran into a professor who remembered her. He offered to teach her how to do biopsies. This broadened her opportunity to help her patients, and she soon began performing biopsies for other black doctors, so their patients, too, could benefit.

In 1940, Dr. Chinn was finally granted admitting privileges at Harlem Hospital after Mayor Fiorello La Guardia ordered hospitals to integrate. The Harlem Riots in 1935 spurred political pressure for the city to do so.

 

LEARNING ABOUT CANCER:

She became convinced that there must be ways to diagnose cancer earlier and possibly slow or cure it. In 1933, she entered Columbia University’s School of Public Health where she earned a Master of Science degree. Her studies there connected her to medical researcher and doctor George Papanicolaou. Papanicolau was developing cytological methods for the study of cancer, and May Chinn was among the doctors who contributed to his studies. (Papanicolaou established the parameters for the “Pap Smear,” a diagnostic tool that has improved the cancer prognosis for millions of women of all backgrounds.)

 

DR. MAY CHINN’S RESEARCH:

In her work, Dr. Chinn pursued two paths to improve the health of her patients. Based on her exposure to Dr. Papanicolaou, she studied what could be learned from exfoliative cytology (cells that are shed from the body).

Dr. Chinn also valued personal health profiles and documented the backgrounds of her patients to better understand factors that might indicate a tendency for cancer. She also pioneered ways to conduct physical exams differently. Even if patients were asymptomatic for cancer, Dr. Chinn always promoted cancer screening methods as part of regular medical care.

Dr. Chinn’s work caught the attention of the science board at Rockefeller University. However, after she was offered a fellowship by the University, it was quickly withdrawn when the administrators learned she was African American and not Chinese, as they had supposed.

 

DR. MAY CHINN’S LATER LIFE:

Dr. Chinn became a legend in Harlem, and did not close her private practice until she was 81. Even then she still volunteered at health clinics in Harlem.

Toward the end of her career, she received special awards from several schools. She accepted an Honorary Doctor of Science degree at Columbia University for her contributions to medicine. She was also recognized as a distinguished alumnus by Columbia Teachers College. The citation on her award from Columbia reads: “a brave warrior in the fight against sickness, poverty and injustice.” And New York University granted her a Doctor of Science degree for “long life service” for her pioneering work in early cancer detection and her dedicated service to her patients in Harlem.

 

OTHER CAUSES AND PURSUITS:

To Dr. Chinn, civil rights causes and greater justice in the medical world were important. Before 1920, she campaigned for women’s suffrage; later, she worked for civil rights. She was one of the founders of Susan Smith McKinney Steward Medical Society, which aided black women in medical school. In 1977, she expanded her influence by joining the Phelps-Stokes Fund, an educational foundation for medical students from Africa to come to the U.S. for medical school.

She was also an active member of Delta Sigma Theta, a sorority founded in 1913 to support educational excellence among African American women.

She died in 1980, but she left an unpublished autobiography, offering this advice: “Become involved with the problems of your Nation, your State, your City, and especially your immediate neighborhood. Help those with problems—help them to take the next step UPWARDS.”

Source: America Comes Alive! www.americacomesalive.com

Kate Kelly

Much Love, Dr. Shermaine #KnowYourHistory #CelebrateYourHistory #ShareYourHistory #BlackWomenWhoRock 

“Black History Woman of the Day: Ella Fitzgerald”

Dubbed "The First Lady of Song," Ella Fitzgerald was the most popular female jazz singer in the United States for more than half a century. In her lifetime, she won 13 Grammy awards and sold over 40 million albums.

Her voice was flexible, wide-ranging, accurate and ageless. She could sing sultry ballads, sweet jazz and imitate every instrument in an orchestra. She worked with all the jazz greats, from Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Nat King Cole, to Frank Sinatra, Dizzy Gillespie and Benny Goodman. (Or rather, some might say all the jazz greats had the pleasure of working with Ella.)

She performed at top venues all over the world, and packed them to the hilt. Her audiences were as diverse as her vocal range. They were rich and poor, made up of all races, all religions and all nationalities. In fact, many of them had just one binding factor in common - they all loved her.

HUMBLE BUT HAPPY BEGINNINGS:

Ella Jane Fitzgerald was born in Newport News, Va. on April 25, 1917. Her father, William, and mother, Temperance (Tempie), parted ways shortly after her birth. Together, Tempie and Ella went to Yonkers, N.Y, where they eventually moved in with Tempie's longtime boyfriend Joseph Da Silva. Ella's half-sister, Frances, was born in 1923 and soon she began referring to Joe as her stepfather.

To support the family, Joe dug ditches and was a part-time chauffeur, while Tempie worked at a laundromat and did some catering. Occasionally, Ella took on small jobs to contribute money as well. Perhaps naïve to the circumstances, Ella worked as a runner for local gamblers, picking up their bets and dropping off money.

Their apartment was in a mixed neighborhood, where Ella made friends easily. She considered herself more of a tomboy, and often joined in the neighborhood games of baseball. Sports aside, she enjoyed dancing and singing with her friends, and some evenings they would take the train into Harlem and watch various acts at the Apollo Theater.

A ROUGHT PATCH:

In 1932, Tempie died from serious injuries that she received in a car accident. Ella took the loss very hard. After staying with Joe for a short time, Tempie's sister Virginia took Ella home. Shortly afterward Joe suffered a heart attack and died, and her little sister Frances joined them.

Unable to adjust to the new circumstances, Ella became increasingly unhappy and entered into a difficult period of her life. Her grades dropped dramatically, and she frequently skipped school. After getting into trouble with the police, she was taken into custody and sent to a reform school. Living there was even more unbearable, as she suffered beatings at the hands of her caretakers.

Eventually Ella escaped from the reformatory. The 15-year-old found herself broke and alone during the Great Depression, and strove to endure.

Never one to complain, Ella later reflected on her most difficult years with an appreciation for how they helped her to mature. She used the memories from these times to help gather emotions for performances, and felt she was more grateful for her success because she knew what it was like to struggle in life.

"WHAT’S SHE GOING TO DO?":

In 1934 Ella's name was pulled in a weekly drawing at the Apollo and she won the opportunity to compete in Amateur Night. Ella went to the theater that night planning to dance, but when the frenzied Edwards Sisters closed the main show, Ella changed her mind. "They were the dancingest sisters around," Ella said, and she felt her act would not compare.

Once on stage, faced with boos and murmurs of "What's she going to do?" from the rowdy crowd, a scared and disheveled Ella made the last minute decision to sing. She asked the band to play Hoagy Carmichael's "Judy," a song she knew well because Connee Boswell's rendition of it was among Tempie's favorites. Ella quickly quieted the audience, and by the song's end they were demanding an encore. She obliged and sang the flip side of the Boswell Sister's record, "The Object of My Affections."

Off stage, and away from people she knew well, Ella was shy and reserved. She was self-conscious about her appearance, and for a while even doubted the extent of her abilities. On stage, however, Ella was surprised to find she had no fear. She felt at home in the spotlight.

"Once up there, I felt the acceptance and love from my audience," Ella said. "I knew I wanted to sing before people the rest of my life."

In the band that night was saxophonist and arranger Benny Carter. Impressed with her natural talent, he began introducing Ella to people who could help launch her career. In the process he and Ella became lifelong friends, often working together.

Fueled by enthusiastic supporters, Ella began entering - and winning - every talent show she could find. In January 1935 she won the chance to perform for a week with the Tiny Bradshaw band at the Harlem Opera House. It was there that Ella first met drummer and bandleader Chick Webb. Although her voice impressed him, Chick had already hired male singer Charlie Linton for the band. He offered Ella the opportunity to test with his band when they played a dance at Yale University.

"If the kids like her," Chick said, "she stays."

Despite the tough crowd, Ella was a major success, and Chick hired her to travel with the band for $12.50 a week.

JAZZING THINGS UP:

In mid 1936, Ella made her first recording. "Love and Kisses" was released under the Decca label, with moderate success. By this time she was performing with Chick's band at the prestigious Harlem's Savoy Ballroom, often referred to as "The World's Most Famous Ballroom."

Shortly afterward, Ella began singing a rendition of the song, "(If You Can't Sing It) You Have to Swing It." During this time, the era of big swing bands was shifting, and the focus was turning more toward bebop. Ella played with the new style, often using her voice to take on the role of another horn in the band. "You Have to Swing It" was one of the first times she began experimenting with scat singing, and her improvisation and vocalization thrilled fans. Throughout her career, Ella would master scat singing, turning it into a form of art.

In 1938, at the age of 21, Ella recorded a playful version of the nursery rhyme, "A-Tisket, A-Tasket." The album sold 1 million copies, hit number one, and stayed on the pop charts for 17 weeks. Suddenly, Ella Fitzgerald was famous.

COMING INTO HER OWN:

On June 16, 1939, Ella mourned the loss of her mentor Chick Webb. In his absence the band was renamed "Ella Fitzgerald and Her Famous Band," and she took on the overwhelming task of bandleader.

Perhaps in search of stability and protection, Ella married Benny Kornegay, a local dockworker who had been pursuing her. Upon learning that Kornegay had a criminal history, Ella realized that the relationship was a mistake and had the marriage annulled.

While on tour with Dizzy Gillespie's band in 1946, Ella fell in love with bassist Ray Brown. The two were married and eventually adopted a son, whom they named Ray, Jr.

At the time, Ray was working for producer and manager Norman Granz on the "Jazz at the Philharmonic" tour. Norman saw that Ella had what it took to be an international star, and he convinced Ella to sign with him. It was the beginning of a lifelong business relationship and friendship.

Under Norman's management, Ella joined the Philharmonic tour, worked with Louis Armstrong on several albums and began producing her infamous songbook series. From 1956-1964, she recorded covers of other musicians' albums, including those by Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, the Gershwins, Johnny Mercer, Irving Berlin, and Rodgers and Hart. The series was wildly popular, both with Ella's fans and the artists she covered.

"I never knew how good our songs were until I heard Ella Fitzgerald sing them," Ira Gershwin once remarked.

Ella also began appearing on television variety shows. She quickly became a favorite and frequent guest on numerous programs, including "The Bing Crosby Show," "The Dinah Shore Show," "The Frank Sinatra Show," "The Ed Sullivan Show," "The Tonight Show," "The Nat King Cole Show," "The Andy Williams Show" and "The Dean Martin Show."

Due to a busy touring schedule, Ella and Ray were often away from home, straining the bond with their son. Ultimately, Ray Jr. and Ella reconnected and mended their relationship.

"All I can say is that she gave to me as much as she could," Ray, Jr. later said, "and she loved me as much as she could."

Unfortunately, busy work schedules also hurt Ray and Ella's marriage. The two divorced in 1952, but remained good friends for the rest of their lives.

OVERCOMING DISCRIMINATION:

On the touring circuit it was well-known that Ella's manager felt very strongly about civil rights and required equal treatment for his musicians, regardless of their color. Norman refused to accept any type of discrimination at hotels, restaurants or concert halls, even when they traveled to the Deep South.

Once, while in Dallas touring for the Philharmonic, a police squad irritated by Norman's principles barged backstage to hassle the performers. They came into Ella's dressing room, where band members Dizzy Gillespie and Illinois Jacquet were shooting dice, and arrested everyone.

"They took us down," Ella later recalled, "and then when we got there, they had the nerve to ask for an autograph."

Norman wasn't the only one willing to stand up for Ella. She received support from numerous celebrity fans, including a zealous Marilyn Monroe.

"I owe Marilyn Monroe a real debt," Ella later said. "It was because of her that I played the Mocambo, a very popular nightclub in the '50s. She personally called the owner of the Mocambo, and told him she wanted me booked immediately, and if he would do it, she would take a front table every night. She told him - and it was true, due to Marilyn's superstar status - that the press would go wild. The owner said yes, and Marilyn was there, front table, every night. The press went overboard. After that, I never had to play a small jazz club again. She was an unusual woman - a little ahead of her times. And she didn't know it."

WORLDWIDE RECOGNITION:

Ella continued to work as hard as she had early on in her career, despite the ill effects on her health. She toured all over the world, sometimes performing two shows a day in cities hundreds of miles apart. In 1974, Ella spent a legendary two weeks performing in New York with Frank Sinatra and Count Basie. Still going strong five years later, she was inducted into the Down Beat magazine Hall of Fame, and received Kennedy Center Honors for her continuing contributions to the arts.

Outside of the arts, Ella had a deep concern for child welfare. Though this aspect of her life was rarely publicized, she frequently made generous donations to organizations for disadvantaged youths, and the continuation of these contributions was part of the driving force that prevented her from slowing down. Additionally, when Frances died, Ella felt she had the additional responsibilities of taking care of her sister's family.

In 1987, United States President Ronald Reagan awarded Ella the National Medal of Arts. It was one of her most prized moments. France followed suit several years later, presenting her with their Commander of Arts and Letters award, while Yale, Dartmouth and several other universities bestowed Ella with honorary doctorates.

END OF AN ERA:

In September of 1986, Ella underwent quintuple coronary bypass surgery. Doctors also replaced a valve in her heart and diagnosed her with diabetes, which they blamed for her failing eyesight. The press carried rumors that she would never be able to sing again, but Ella proved them wrong. Despite protests by family and friends, including Norman, Ella returned to the stage and pushed on with an exhaustive schedule.

By the 1990s, Ella had recorded over 200 albums. In 1991, she gave her final concert at New York's renowned Carnegie Hall. It was the 26th time she performed there.

As the effects from her diabetes worsened, 76-year-old Ella experienced severe circulatory problems and was forced to have both of her legs amputated below the knees. She never fully recovered from the surgery, and afterward, was rarely able to perform. During this time, Ella enjoyed sitting outside in her backyard, and spending time with Ray, Jr. and her granddaughter Alice.

"I just want to smell the air, listen to the birds and hear Alice laugh," she said.

On June 15, 1996, Ella Fitzgerald died in her Beverly Hills home. Hours later, signs of remembrance began to appear all over the world. A wreath of white flowers stood next to her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and a marquee outside the Hollywood Bowl theater read, "Ella, we will miss you."

After a private memorial service, traffic on the freeway was stopped to let her funeral procession pass through. She was laid to rest in the "Sanctuary of the Bells" section of the Sunset Mission Mausoleum at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, Calif.

www.ellafitzgerald.com

 

“It isn't where you came from, it’s where you're going that counts.”

“Coming through the years, and finding that I not only have just the fans of my day, but the young ones of today—that's what it means, it means it was worth all of it.”

“Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong.”

“I guess what everyone wants more than anything else is to be loved. And to know that you loved me for my singing is too much for me. Forgive me if I don't have all the words. Maybe I can sing it and you'll understand.”

“Not bad for someone who only studied music to get that half credit in high school.”

“I know I'm no glamour girl, and it's not easy for me to get up in front of a crowd of people. It used to bother me a lot, but now I've got it figured out that God gave me this talent to use, so I just stand there and sing.”

“I’m very shy, and I shy away from people. But the moment I hit the stage, it’s a different feeling, I get nerve from somewhere; maybe it’s because it’s something I love to do.” 

“I stole everything I ever heard, but mostly I stole from the horns.”

Much Love, Dr.Shermaine #KnowYourHistory #ShareYourHistory #CelebrateYourHistory

"It's Not Selfish to Love Yourself, Take Care of Yourself and to Make Your Happiness a Priority. It's a Necessity." (Mandy Hale)

"Self-Care is Not Selfish. You Cannot Serve From an Empty Vessel." (Eleanor Brown)