Articles by Steven Gilchrist

E very year the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recognizes March 24 th as World Tuberculosis Day.   On this day, the CDC and the world community promote methods for people to learn more about tuberculosis – one of the deadliest diseases in the world.   March 24 th is an important day concerning tuberculosis because it was on March 24, 1882 when Dr. Robert Koch, a German physician, discovered Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that causes tuberculosis (TB). According to the CDC, tuberculosis has been an ailment that humans have suffered with for thousands of years.   Approximately 2 billion people are infected with M. tuberculosis.   “Each year, nearly 9 million people in the world become sick with TB disease, and almost 1.5 million deaths are attributed to TB,” according to the CDC website.   Since 1993, the rates of tuberculosis infections have significantly declined in the United States; however, the disease disproportionately affects racial and ethnic mi

T his past February, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, displayed works of art by 10 African American artists in honor of Black History Month.   Edmund Barry Gaither, the director of the Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists, hosted the African American Artists Tour.   To see an online tour of the exhibit visit: http://www.mfa.org/explore/multimedia-guide/african-american-artists The exhibit included artistic works from the early 19 th century to the present.   The artwork was spread out across different sections of the museum.   I was able to locate all of the works in the exhibit through a self-guided tour.     Some of the artists represented were Norman Lewis, Archibald Motley, Art Smith, and Kara Walker. In 1963, Lewis was a co-founder of Spiral – an artists’ discussion group that was involved in the Civil Rights Movement.   Smith (1917 – 1982) created jewelry “characterized by flowing organic forms that show the influence of surrealism, but has its own d