Healing Politics
A Doctor's Journey into the Heart of Our Political Epidemic
1 of 1 copy available
A child of immigrants, Abdul El-Sayed grew up feeling a responsibility to help others. He threw himself into the study of medicine and excelled—winning a Rhodes Scholarship, earning two advanced degrees, and landing a tenure-track position at Columbia University. At thirty, he became the youngest city health official in America, tasked with rebuilding Detroit's health department after years of austerity policies.
But El-Sayed found himself disillusioned. He could heal the sick—even build healthier, safer communities—but that wouldn't address the social and economic conditions causing illness in the first place. So he left health for politics, running for Governor of Michigan and earning the support of progressive champions like Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders.
This memoir traces the life of a young idealist, weaving together powerful personal stories and fascinating forays into history and science. Marrying his unique perspective with the science of epidemiology, El-Sayed diagnoses an underlying epidemic afflicting our country, an epidemic of insecurity. And to heal the rifts this epidemic has created, he lays out a new direction for the progressive movement. This is a bold, personal, and compellingly original book from a prominent young leader.
"In Healing Politics, Abdul El-Sayed doesn't just diagnose the causes of our broken politics; he gives us a prescription and treatment plan." —Representative Pramila Jayapal
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
April 12, 2022 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781683358138
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781683358138
- File size: 1693 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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March 13, 2020
Physician and activist El-Sayed, host of the podcast America Dissected, describes what he calls an "epidemic of insecurity" threatening social, economic, and political futures. Through the perspective of a first-generation son of Egyptian immigrants, El-Sayed aims to illustrate how insecurity affects one's overall health and well-being. Relevant personal experience as a doctor and politician lend credibility to El-Sayed's discourse and explanation of how politics fail people and blame victims. Included is an exploration of how science shaped the author's life, a diagnosis of the causes of unaffordable health care and a rigged economy in the United States, as well as his ambitious policy recommendations. Well-informed, this book successfully captures a troubling political reality and offers potential solutions to improve living conditions for all Americans. VERDICT Readers with an interest in progressive politics who are looking for a well-rounded analysis of how the current political environment came to be will be drawn to this impassioned work.--Rich McIntyre Jr., UConn Health Sciences Lib., Farmington
Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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