A disturbing new report reveals that Black men who survive gun violence are often treated as suspects rather than patients, exposing systemic racial biases in healthcare and law enforcement practices.
The findings, compiled by Dr. Cherrell Green, a non-residential fellow at the Violence, Inequality, and Power Lab, examine the structural inequalities that shape how Black men experience trauma, recovery, and medical care.
Through her research, Green, who serves as the associate director of engagement and assessment at Everytown Community Safety Fund, examined the long-term psychological and systemic harm inflicted on Black male survivors of violence.
“This was really born out of my dissertation that examined the experiences of Black men experiencing trauma and violence,” Green told The Informer. “Over the course of 40 interviews, what I consistently heard was the systemic racism that permeates every aspect of their lives, and violent injury due to guns was a main point of that.”
The report, “Code Blue: How Police and Healthcare Providers Disrupt Healing for Violently Injured Black Men,” is based on interviews with Black men across the United States who have sustained gunshot injuries. The study details how law enforcement’s presence in hospitals and the prejudices of medical staff contribute to further trauma and racialized harm.
One of the most egregious findings in the report is the extent to which law enforcement officers invade the privacy of Black male patients, treating them as perpetrators rather than victims. Dr. Green detailed instances where police officers entered hospital rooms without consent, questioned patients under duress and even took their fingerprints while they were sleeping or incapacitated.
“Imagine you’re laying in a hospital bed, trying to recover, and you have a police officer standing over you, assuming you’re the suspect,” she explained. “In some cases, they are even coercing medical staff into handing over patient records without authorization.”
This interference not only compromises the healing process but also fosters distrust between Black communities and healthcare providers. The report states that Black men are frequently denied the same level of care and empathy as other patients, with doctors and nurses often minimizing their pain or neglecting their psychological well-being.
Beyond physical recovery, the long-term psychological effects of this treatment are profound. Many of the men interviewed for the study described experiencing nightmares, flashbacks, and hypervigilance after being shot. Without adequate mental health support, they are left to navigate these traumas alone.
“I ask them, ‘What would you have wanted at the time?’ and every single man said, ‘I just wish I had someone to talk to,’” Green said. “They didn’t call it therapy, but they wanted someone to just listen.”
Green also recounted the experience of a 17-year-old who was shot multiple times, including in the head and chest, yet survived.
He was driven to the hospital by a friend because the ambulance took too long to arrive. When they reached the hospital, police officers stopped them from entering and demanded to search the car for weapons while the young man was bleeding out. Eventually, he lost consciousness but was taken inside just in time for treatment. Incidents like this, she noted, illustrate how Black men seeking medical attention are often met with suspicion instead of care.
“We get to hospitals looking for support, and we’re scrutinized and villainized. We are pathologized and dehumanized,” she said.
One social media user, Dr. Kam Doobay, took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to note the discrimination witnessed in the medical system.
“White men have been peacefully brought in by EMS [and] officers to our hospital for care after driving drunk, losing control of their cars, and hitting poles or other cars. Black men are criminalized, feared, targeted, and murdered,” Doobay wrote.
Dr. Green added that many survivors return to the same communities where they were shot, sometimes encountering the very individuals responsible for their injuries. With no formal support system in place, these men are often forced to rely on self-protective measures, which can perpetuate cycles of violence.
“There are traumas coming from multiple directions. Black men are walking around here traumatized, not just from fatal injuries but from hearing gunshots and seeing someone shot; all of these things add up and fuel trauma,” Green continued. “There’s no access to care—physical, psychological, or mental. We need healthy communities where people are thriving, not just surviving.”
Addressing the Disparities in Care
The Code Blue report recommends establishing clear protocols for police behavior in hospitals to prevent unauthorized interrogations and record-seizing. Expanding hospital violence intervention programs to integrate medical professionals with lived experience in community violence is also among the proposed solutions.
Investing in culturally competent mental health care tailored to Black male survivors is another critical step.
Community-based trauma centers providing alternatives to hospitals for those who distrust the medical system are necessary to address the systemic failures that have left so many without proper care.
“Oftentimes, the doctors came in, patched them up, and didn’t even ask how they were doing,” Green told The Informer. “That lack of care reinforces the dehumanization of Black men in medical settings.”
The findings of Code Blue reflect the structural barriers that Black men face in law enforcement and healthcare, Dr. Green asserted further. She said the consequences extend beyond individual patients, affecting entire communities as untreated trauma fuels cycles of violence and distrust.
Addressing these disparities requires immediate policy changes and a shift in how institutions perceive and treat Black male survivors of violence.
“We must recognize that those most harmed by violence are most deserving of support,” she concluded. “Only by acknowledging these systemic failures can we begin to create pathways to real healing and justice.”
