St. Louis County Health Director: I Was Assaulted, Called 'Brown C----' After Mask Plea

[Nevilledog]

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Tweet text:
Kyle Griffin
@kylegriffin1
Read. Every. Word.

Dr. Faisal Khan, St. Louis County acting Health Director, spoke in favor of a mask mandate this week.

"I have never been subjected to the racist, xenophobic, and threatening behavior that greeted me in the County Council meeting."

St. Louis County Health Director: I Was Assaulted, Called 'Brown C——' After Mask Plea
Editor's note: Dr. Faisal Khan, acting director of the St. Louis County Department of Public Health, spoke in favor of a mask mandate on Tuesday...
riverfronttimes.com
11:00 AM · Jul 29, 2021

https://www.riverfronttimes.com/newsblog/2021/07/28/st-louis-county-health-director-i-was-assaulted-called-brown-c-after-mask-plea

Editor's note: Dr. Faisal Khan, acting director of the St. Louis County Department of Public Health, spoke in favor of a mask mandate on Tuesday night during a county council meeting. On Wednesday, he wrote a letter to Council Chair Rita Heard Days describing his experience during and after his comments. The full letter is posted below:

Dear Chairwoman Days,

I appreciated the opportunity to share the latest data, scientific research, and public health advice with the County Council last night. As I mentioned in my letter on Monday, the latest public health order regarding masks is an important disease transmission mitigation strategy necessary to slow the spread of the coronavirus, especially as the much more contagious Delta variant is now the dominant variant in Missouri and in our region. As Director of the Department of Public Health, it is incumbent upon me to offer the best public health guidance I can, and that is what I endeavored to do last night.

After completing my medical training, I chose to focus my work on public health. I have committed myself — over my entire 25-year career — to improving health status indicators for entire communities, particularly in the most vulnerable segments of society. I have worked to improve public health around the world, working in Australia, Vietnam, Pakistan, South Africa, the People's Republic of China, Zimbabwe, Botswana and the United States (West Virginia, Massachusetts and Missouri). I have been a proud citizen of the United States since 2013.

In all that time and in all those places, I have never been subjected to the racist, xenophobic, and threatening behavior that greeted me in the County Council meeting last night. My time before the Council began with a dog-whistle question from Councilman Tim Fitch, who said he wanted to emphasize for the assembled crowd that I was not from this country. As you know — and as Mr. Fitch surely knew since he was the crowd's leader — the great majority of the people in the raucous crowd appeared to be from the “MAGA” movement, as evidenced by their “Trump 2024” chants. The MAGA movement is well-known for xenophobia and discriminatory treatment of racial minorities and has engaged in violent acts against government institutions like in our nation's capital on January 6.

*snip*

[Wingus Dingus]

1. I saw that. Disgraceful treatment of a fellow American

trying to keep his county safe.

[Sherman A1]

2. The entire County Council is an embarrassment

They should all be ashamed of their actions, inactions and their vote on the mask mandate.