Please join us to celebrate the opening of our newest art exhibition: 

Call and Response: A Narrative of Reverence to our Foremothers in Gynecology

Countway Library is thrilled to host this exhibition, on loan from the Resilient Sisterhood Project through mid-January.

Call and Response sheds light on the exploitation of enslaved Black women in the origins of modern gynecology, centering the lives of Anarcha, Betsey, and Lucy—three women subjected to repeated experimental surgeries by Dr. J. Marion Sims in the 1840s. Curated by the Resilient Sisterhood Project with artist Jules Arthur, the exhibition blends past and present, honoring these foremothers while highlighting generations of Black women who transformed medicine. This powerful narrative invites us to unearth history, confront the present, and imagine a more just future for reproductive health. Learn more about the exhibition at countway.info/call.

The opening reception will feature artist and curator statements, a panel discussion, live music by Kimie Han, and light refreshments.

All are welcome! Please register below. 

Panelist Bios:

Jules Arthur

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Jules was raised with strong values and a moral sensibility that has become a wellspring source for the insights expressed in his work. With an educational background in visual arts and his studied observations of life, he is able to combine passion and tradition into visual stories of human endeavor. In 1995, he moved to New York City to attend The School of Visual Arts where he received a B.F.A. with honors in 1999. The following year, he was privileged to receive guidance from Robert Blackburn while attending the Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop. Since then, he has been the recipient of awards and has been given a commending review in the New York Times for his “deft draftsmanship.” Committed to the path of a lifelong student of life and art, he can be found frequently in continuing course studies at the renowned Art Students League in New York City. He states, “If one is to master the human form one must remain in constant pursuit of it.”

Dr. Michele David

Dr. David is a skilled primary care clinician and public health practitioner with proven leadership experience and a commitment to improve health outcomes. Dr. David is Chief of Quality and Safety at MIT Medical. She was an Associate Professor of Medicine at the BU School of Medicine, Co-Director of the Haitian Health Institute at BMC, and Director of Community Health Programs at BU, Center of Excellence in Women’s Health. Dr. David has been the recipient of several awards including the MA Health and Human Services William A. Hinton Award in recognition of her commitment to public health, especially the improvement of health care for communities of color in 2010 and a leadership Award in 2012 from the MA DPH.

Dr. Yvonne Gomez-Carrion

Dr. Yvonne Gomez-Carrion (she/her) was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. At the age of eight, she proclaimed that she wanted to be both a physician and a priest. Nearly 6 decades, she
is a physician who has been known to preach. Many opportunities allowed her to get an excellent education at Princeton University for her undergraduate education where she majored in Psychology. As a recipient of the National Health Service Corp, she attended New York City’s Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons for medical school.

Dr. Gomez-Carrion is a board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist who has been in clinical practice since 1987 as an attending at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, MA, after completing her residency training at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City.  

Dr. Gomez-Carrion believes in a holistic approach to health care. For the past 4 decades, she has cared for patients with medical and social challenges including hypertension, diabetes, seizure disorders, autoimmune diseases, obesity, depression, domestic violence, substance abuse and homelessness. Since delivering her last baby on 2/14/2015, she has been a problem-oriented gynecologist who has expertise in managing patients with uterine fibroids, abnormal pap smears, abnormal vaginal bleeding, ovarian masses, gender dysphoria, and anxiety with pelvic exams. 

In June 2023, Dr. Gomez-Carrion ended her clinical practice at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center to focus on her involvement in community and medical professionals’ education, addressing health disparities, black/brown birthing individuals’ reproductive justice and humanism in medicine.  In addition, she looks forward to spending more time on her own self-care by continuing her practices of meditation, exercising, writing poetry, spending more time with family/friends and showing gratitude.

Dr. Gomez-Carrion has devoted her professional life to educating patients about their bodies' functioning and resilience, and discussing their treatment options for care, which empowers them to direct their care.

Lilly Marcelin

Lilly Marcelin is a community activist and organizer who has dedicated herself to a lifelong journey around racial and social justice equity. Ms. Marcelin has worked on a broad range of issues from gender-based violence, human trafficking, health and socioeconomic disparities to women’s reproductive health and rights. She is the Founder and Executive Director of the Resilient Sisterhood Project (RSP) with a mission to inform and empower women and young adults of African descent about the common diseases of the reproductive system that disproportionately affect them. Ms. Marcelin strongly prefers to work in partnership with–rather than on behalf of–black women to address deeply rooted systemic racism. Ms. Marcelin holds educational degrees from Wellesley College and Tufts University. In addition, she has been the recipient of many awards over the years with the most recent ones in 2023.