Author Description

Review "Abdul is one of our most gifted communicators and fiercest advocates for the ideal of health care as a fundamental human right. In Healing Politics, he draws on his invaluable blend of experience as a doctor, public health commissioner, and political leader to bring a sorely needed sense of empathy and humanity to the debate over how to mend our fractured society."-- "Jon Favreau, Pod Save America""Abdul El-Sayed understands something very profound. That at the end of the day, no matter how much wealth and power the big moneyed interests have...that at the end of the day, what is more important than their money is ordinary people coming together in the struggle for economic, social, racial, and environmental justice."-- "Bernie Sanders, US senator from Vermont and presidential candidate" Product Description MP3 CD FormatA child of immigrants, Abdul El-Sayed grew up feeling a responsibility to help others. He threw himself into the study of medicine and excelled—winning a Rhodes Scholarship, earning two advanced degrees, and landing a tenure-track position at Columbia University. At age thirty, he became the youngest city health official in America, tasked with rebuilding Detroit’s health department after years of austerity policies. But El-Sayed found himself disillusioned. He could heal the sick—even build healthier and safer communities—but that wouldn’t address the social and economic conditions causing illness in the first place. So he left health for politics, running for governor of Michigan and earning the support of progressive champions like Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders. In Healing Politics, El-Sayed traces the life of a young idealist, weaving together powerful personal stories and fascinating forays into history and science. Marrying his unique perspective with the science of epidemiology, El-Sayed diagnoses an underlying epidemic afflicting our country, an epidemic of insecurity. And to heal the