Black Tulane University Med Students Pose In Striking Photo To Honor Ancestors At Former Slave Plantation
Fifteen Black students from Tulane University have gone viral this week after sharing a striking photograph of the group wearing white lab coats at Whitney Plantation in Louisiana.
The post, which was originally shared on Dec. 14, shows a group of medical students posing in front of a former slave plantation, honoring their ancestors.
“We are our ancestors’ wildest dreams,” wrote Russell Ledet, Tulane medical student, in a tweet. “In the background, an original slave quarter. In the foreground, original descendants of slaves and medical students.”
Whitney Plantation is known to be one of the few plantation museums that focuses on the experiences of the enslaved rather than the enslavers, The Washington Post reports.
According to the Post, the idea for the photograph came after Ledet’s visit to the plantation with his daughter.
After his daughter pointed out the significance of being a Black physician in the U.S., Ledet decided that the other Black medical students should see it.
“I think you could see that in our faces in the photo, that we knew very well that we’re standing here and doing our best to embody the resilience of our ancestors,” Sydney Labat, one of the medical students, told the Post. “Standing here doing our best to show that we are here, and we aren’t going anywhere.”
Ledet says they hope sharing the images will reach Black children who might not see doctors who look like them, The Washington Post reports.
He even shared the tweet with former First Lady Michelle Obama to emphasize their push for education.
“We’re trying to do our best to show students, other children, this can be you, this is you, and nothing is out of your reach,” said Labat.
