by Dr. E. Faye Williams
(Trice Edney Wire) – The following information is found on the cancer.net website:
What is Targeted Therapy?
Targeted therapy is a type of cancer treatment. It uses drugs to target specific genes and proteins that help cancer cells survive and grow. Targeted therapy can affect the tissue environment that cancer cells grow in or it can target cells related to cancer growth, like blood vessel cells.
How does targeted therapy work to treat cancer?
To develop targeted therapies, researchers work to identify the specific genetic changes that help a tumor grow and change. This is called the drug’s “target.” An ideal target for this kind of therapy would be a protein that is present in cancer cells but not in healthy cells. Once researchers have identified a target, they develop a drug treatment that attacks it.
Like other treatments, targeted therapies can cause side effects, so it is important that your doctor matches your tumor to the best possible treatment and dose.
As I evaluate the diseases of Trumpism and its malignant mutation DeSantism, I look for the answer to an ultimate cure. Sadly, like their progenitors, Racism, Insecurity, Fear, and Jealousy, there have been inroads to their elimination, but no final and ultimate cure. Taking a page from medical science, it may be a great time to employ a targeted treatment.
Last week, the NAACP issued a formal travel advisory for Florida in response to DeSantis’ aggressive attempts to erase Black history and restrict Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs in Florida schools.
The NAACP (of which I am a Life Member) asserts: We won’t stand for this kind of hate-inspired leadership.
They continue: This is a state that so clearly devalues and marginalizes the contributions of, and the challenges faced, by Black Americans and other marginalized groups. Gov. DeSantis’ decisions to ban an AP course on African American Studies and to sign a bill defunding DEI programs were deliberate attempts at erasing Black history, culture, and identity from Florida’s education system … policies like these that perpetuate the systemic disregard of the contributions made by Black Americans and other people of color in the United States.
I applaud the NAACP’s travel advisory. Rather than the well-used boycott of an entire entity, the advisory provides the opportunity for a targeted treatment of those entities founded upon principles and philosophies rooted in hatred, while protecting the interests of the ‘innocent.’
The travel advisory that we must undertake is one of intelligent research and uncompromising principles. Our first consideration must be how and where we spend our money. At what hotel will we stay? At which restaurant will we eat? What entertainment venues will we visit? Our choices will determine whether our dollars support our interests or the interests of Trumpism/DeSantism. Regardless of the circumstance or condition, we must make the conscious choice to spend our dollars where they do us no harm.
Past patronage is meaningless. A business can make/serve/have the best {fill in the blank} ever made, but if, as you enter the business, you see a symbol such as a pro-Trump or pro-DeSantis poster/banner you MUST turn around and leave as though the poster read: KLAN RALLY AHEAD – ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK!!
If there are no symbols or if no business positionon the Trump/DeSantis policies has been officially established – ASK! This might make you uncomfortable, but the discomfort is temporary while the result of inaction might be discomfort for your children or grandchildren. Local organizations can simplify this process by identifying local businesses which support or reject the principles of discrimination.
No such initiative can be comfortable, painless, or immediately resolve the challenge. There are no guarantees that it can be accomplished without casualties. The only certainty is that it cannot be accomplished without commitment!
(Dr. E. Faye Williams is President of The Dick Gregory Society (http://thedickgregorysociety.org/. Click or tap to follow the link.” data-auth=”Verified” data-linkindex=”5″>thedickgregorysociety.org; [email protected]) and President Emerita of the National Congress of Black Women)
