June 29, 2020 • 7 mins
Here's something ironic about the coronavirus: While it's forced us all to practice social distancing, it’s also brought us together. Across the US, people are forming mutual aid groups to help neighbors with everything from grocery delivery to dog walking. We talk to the founder of a mutual aid group—Dr. Eden Almasude—who is also a Yale psychiatry resident, about how individuals and communities benefit from these self-formed organizations.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to this episode of Here's Something Good, a production
of the Seneca Women Podcast Network and I Heart Radio.
Each day, we aspire to bring you the good news,
the silver lining, the glass half full, because there is
good happening in the world everywhere, every day. We just
need to look for and share it. Here's something good
(00:27):
for today, Here's something ironic about the coronavirus. While it's
forced us all to practice social distancing, it's also brought
people together. And we're not just talking about people living
in the same household. Neighbors have banded together to help
those in need. They're delivering groceries for residents who can't
(00:49):
get out, picking up prescriptions, providing rides, and distributing protective equipment.
These volunteer efforts are known as mutual aid groups, and
thousands of them have sprung up across the country, fueled
by Facebook and Google Docs. They give us an opportunity
to do something good for others, and they're the perfect
antidote to feelings of helplessness. One of the best things
(01:11):
about these mutual aid groups is that they can be
the foundation for lasting, positive change. The hope is that
the good work will continue and that these organizations will
continue to bring us together. Today, we talked to Dr
Eden Alma Sude, a psychiatry resident at the Yale School
of Medicine who also co founded a mutual aid group
in New Haven. She'll tell us why the mutual aid
(01:33):
movement is so important and how each of us can
play a role in helping others now. Mutual aid groups
of one type or another have been around since the
beginning of our country. There were a number of such
groups in the early African American community. For instance, the
Free African Society started in seventeen seven in Philadelphia, and
it required its members to contribute money to a fund
(01:56):
that supported the needy. Throughout our history, neighbors have formed
groups to help neighbors. During the Great Depression of the
nineteen thirties, self form cooperatives arose to help the vast
numbers of unemployed. Today, the coronavirus has led to a
wide range of mutual aid efforts. These groups have been
providing everything from dog walking to childcare. We spoke to
(02:17):
Dr Eden Alma Sude, a psychiatry resident at the Yale
School of Medicine and a co founder of the New
Haven Area Mutual Aid Fund She and her co founders
started their group when COVID began to devastate local households
that were already in need. Here's what she had to say.
I think a mutual aid as neighbors helping neighbors, so
(02:38):
we all have something to give and we all have
something you need. And I think a lot of us
experienced this in friendships with emotional support just two way streets.
And so this is different from a lot of Cherokee
initiatives because those are really topped down and often with
a lot of value judgments about what kind of needs
(02:59):
are legitimate or not, or what kinds of people they
are willing to support financially. We're all part of the
same communities, we all share the same neighborhood, and sharing
those good for everyone. When the most marginalized people in
a society are didn't care of and have sur vibal
and we've met, we all do better. As a physician,
(03:22):
I think a lot about the social and structural determinants
of health. So these are the kinds of things like
true security, having stable housing, transportation, child care, and these
things fact our health far more than any kind of
direct health intervention that happens in a hospital or a
(03:43):
clinic um and we know that from decades of research,
and so if we're going to really improve the health
of a community, we have to look at those social
determinants of health. And in the current crisis, the economic
effects of the pandemic have really been front and center,
(04:04):
especially for immigrant community too, are often excluded from federal
and state programs that provide COVID nineteen relief. And I
think one of the biggest things that mutual aid does
for all of us is giuse this a sense of
hope and solidarity and being in community. And you know
(04:24):
that having strong interpersonal relationships and a strong community is
good for our health, our physical health, our mental health.
And I can say that personally that going to the pandemic,
facing a lot of uncertainty at work in the hospital
and just feeling really hopeless a lot of the time,
doing this work has given me a sense of meaning
(04:48):
and a source of hope. One thing that has been
really cool and inspiring for me to see is that
a lot of people, when they get these food boxes
and casciousisms as well, ask how can help. And so
we actually have a base of now five hundred volunteers
and that has grown just since the beginning of April,
(05:09):
and many of those people, actually several hundreds are receiving
food boxes themselves. And so in a town like New
Haven where there's a huge towndown divide, massive inequality, seeing
people from all different class and cultural backgrounds come together
to do this project is just really incredible and something
(05:30):
that I don't think we see enough of the people
coming together across those kinds of boundaries. Eden is such
an inspiration. She proves that there's no force greater than
a group of people motivated by purpose. I've seen the
good these groups can do, and I know that some
people would not have been able to survive the pandemic
without their help. And the great thing about mutual aid
(05:52):
groups is that anyone can get involved. You don't have
to pledge huge amounts of time or resources. You have
the option to help in whatever way you can. So
here's something good for today. Even in the worst of times,
when we're feeling the most helpless, there's always something we
can do. Giving a hand to others can take us
away from our own concerns and allow us to focus
(06:15):
on what's important. Mutual aid groups remind us that when
we come together for a purpose, we can be more
powerful and effective than we ever imagined. To learn more
about mutual aid groups in your area, check out mutual
aid hub dot org. Have a great day, Thank you
(06:45):
for listening, and please share today's something Good with others
in your life. This is Kim Azarelli, co author of
Fast Forward and co founder of Seneca Women. To learn
more about Seneca Women, go to Seneca Women dot com
or download the Seneca Women app free in the app store.
Cares Something Good is a production of the Seneca Women
podcast network and I Heart Radio Have a Great Day.
(07:12):
For more podcasts from my heart Radio, check out the
I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen
to your favorite shows.
Welcome to this episode of Here's Something Good, a production
of the Seneca Women Podcast Network and I Heart Radio.
Each day, we aspire to bring you the good news,
the silver lining, the glass half full, because there is
good happening in the world everywhere, every day. We just
need to look for and share it. Here's something good
(00:27):
for today, Here's something ironic about the coronavirus. While it's
forced us all to practice social distancing, it's also brought
people together. And we're not just talking about people living
in the same household. Neighbors have banded together to help
those in need. They're delivering groceries for residents who can't
(00:49):
get out, picking up prescriptions, providing rides, and distributing protective equipment.
These volunteer efforts are known as mutual aid groups, and
thousands of them have sprung up across the country, fueled
by Facebook and Google Docs. They give us an opportunity
to do something good for others, and they're the perfect
antidote to feelings of helplessness. One of the best things
(01:11):
about these mutual aid groups is that they can be
the foundation for lasting, positive change. The hope is that
the good work will continue and that these organizations will
continue to bring us together. Today, we talked to Dr
Eden Alma Sude, a psychiatry resident at the Yale School
of Medicine who also co founded a mutual aid group
in New Haven. She'll tell us why the mutual aid
(01:33):
movement is so important and how each of us can
play a role in helping others now. Mutual aid groups
of one type or another have been around since the
beginning of our country. There were a number of such
groups in the early African American community. For instance, the
Free African Society started in seventeen seven in Philadelphia, and
it required its members to contribute money to a fund
(01:56):
that supported the needy. Throughout our history, neighbors have formed
groups to help neighbors. During the Great Depression of the
nineteen thirties, self form cooperatives arose to help the vast
numbers of unemployed. Today, the coronavirus has led to a
wide range of mutual aid efforts. These groups have been
providing everything from dog walking to childcare. We spoke to
(02:17):
Dr Eden Alma Sude, a psychiatry resident at the Yale
School of Medicine and a co founder of the New
Haven Area Mutual Aid Fund She and her co founders
started their group when COVID began to devastate local households
that were already in need. Here's what she had to say.
I think a mutual aid as neighbors helping neighbors, so
(02:38):
we all have something to give and we all have
something you need. And I think a lot of us
experienced this in friendships with emotional support just two way streets.
And so this is different from a lot of Cherokee
initiatives because those are really topped down and often with
a lot of value judgments about what kind of needs
(02:59):
are legitimate or not, or what kinds of people they
are willing to support financially. We're all part of the
same communities, we all share the same neighborhood, and sharing
those good for everyone. When the most marginalized people in
a society are didn't care of and have sur vibal
and we've met, we all do better. As a physician,
(03:22):
I think a lot about the social and structural determinants
of health. So these are the kinds of things like
true security, having stable housing, transportation, child care, and these
things fact our health far more than any kind of
direct health intervention that happens in a hospital or a
(03:43):
clinic um and we know that from decades of research,
and so if we're going to really improve the health
of a community, we have to look at those social
determinants of health. And in the current crisis, the economic
effects of the pandemic have really been front and center,
(04:04):
especially for immigrant community too, are often excluded from federal
and state programs that provide COVID nineteen relief. And I
think one of the biggest things that mutual aid does
for all of us is giuse this a sense of
hope and solidarity and being in community. And you know
(04:24):
that having strong interpersonal relationships and a strong community is
good for our health, our physical health, our mental health.
And I can say that personally that going to the pandemic,
facing a lot of uncertainty at work in the hospital
and just feeling really hopeless a lot of the time,
doing this work has given me a sense of meaning
(04:48):
and a source of hope. One thing that has been
really cool and inspiring for me to see is that
a lot of people, when they get these food boxes
and casciousisms as well, ask how can help. And so
we actually have a base of now five hundred volunteers
and that has grown just since the beginning of April,
(05:09):
and many of those people, actually several hundreds are receiving
food boxes themselves. And so in a town like New
Haven where there's a huge towndown divide, massive inequality, seeing
people from all different class and cultural backgrounds come together
to do this project is just really incredible and something
(05:30):
that I don't think we see enough of the people
coming together across those kinds of boundaries. Eden is such
an inspiration. She proves that there's no force greater than
a group of people motivated by purpose. I've seen the
good these groups can do, and I know that some
people would not have been able to survive the pandemic
without their help. And the great thing about mutual aid
(05:52):
groups is that anyone can get involved. You don't have
to pledge huge amounts of time or resources. You have
the option to help in whatever way you can. So
here's something good for today. Even in the worst of times,
when we're feeling the most helpless, there's always something we
can do. Giving a hand to others can take us
away from our own concerns and allow us to focus
(06:15):
on what's important. Mutual aid groups remind us that when
we come together for a purpose, we can be more
powerful and effective than we ever imagined. To learn more
about mutual aid groups in your area, check out mutual
aid hub dot org. Have a great day, Thank you
(06:45):
for listening, and please share today's something Good with others
in your life. This is Kim Azarelli, co author of
Fast Forward and co founder of Seneca Women. To learn
more about Seneca Women, go to Seneca Women dot com
or download the Seneca Women app free in the app store.
Cares Something Good is a production of the Seneca Women
podcast network and I Heart Radio Have a Great Day.
(07:12):
For more podcasts from my heart Radio, check out the
I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen
to your favorite shows.
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