CDC Employees Call Out A 'Toxic Culture Of Racial Aggressions'
Dr. Robert Redfield, CDC Director, was sent a letter signed by over 1,400 current CDC employees demanding the agency address anti-Black racism within its organization. Saul Loeb-Pool/Getty Images hide caption
Dr. Robert Redfield, CDC Director, was sent a letter signed by over 1,400 current CDC employees demanding the agency address anti-Black racism within its organization.
Saul Loeb-Pool/Getty ImagesOver 1,400 current employees at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are demanding the organization "clean its own house" of what they describe as a "culture of toxic racial aggression, bullying and marginalization." The letter authors say the agency has made "scant progress" towards effective change and call for the CDC to immediately address their concerns through a list of 7 specific demands.
NPR reporter Selena Simmons-Duffin broke this story. She details the experiences of former employees and tells us about the agency's response to the letter.
Read the letter and her reporting.
Email the show at shortwave@npr.org.
This episode was produced by Rebecca Ramirez, edited by Viet Le and fact-checked by Brit Hanson.