Columbia Psychiatry Chair Suspended After Tweet About Dark-Skinned Model

The chair of the Columbia University Department of Psychiatry was suspended on Wednesday after he referred to a dark-skinned model as a freak of nature.

Whether a work of art or a freak of nature she is a beautiful sight to behold, according to the department chair. Ms. Gatwech is an American model of South Sudanese descent and her fans refer to her as the "Queen of the Dark".

Dr. Lieberman did not respond to requests for comment after his account was no longer available.

He apologized in an email to his colleagues on Tuesday before he was suspended.

An apology from me to the Black community, to women, and to all of you is not enough.

Dr. Lieberman was removed from his position at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital because he was considered one of the leading psychiatrists in the nation. A spokesman for Columbia University said that the decision was final.

On Wednesday afternoon, department leaders called a meeting for faculty and staff to discuss the situation and to announce that an interim chair would be named. A person who attended the meeting said the tone was serious and grave. The person said that the head of the hospital described the tweet as outrageous.

The post drew negative attention from a number of medical professionals, many of whom were Black women.

A medical student and fellow in medicine at the University of Pennsylvania wrote a Medium post about comments she received on a thread.

If you don't understand how racist language like that is harmful when you're supposed to care for the mental health of people, you're not qualified to be a Psychiatrist.

The Columbia University Department of Psychiatry is one of the largest such departments in the nation and has consistently achieved top rankings.

Robert Klitzman, a professor of Psychiatry at Columbia, described the episode as unfortunate and said it highlights how deep and pervasive some of our own unconscious biases can be.

He noted that Dr. Lieberman had spent decades doing important research.

The incident speaks to the need to be vigilant in our awareness of our own unconscious biases, according to Dr. Klitzman.

The American Psychiatric Association issued an apology in January of 2021.

Quality access to psychiatric care for people of color was promised by the organization.

White psychiatrists presented racist beliefs as scientific fact in the past.

Black skin was thought to be the result of a mild form of leprosy by Dr. Benjamin Rush.

Black Americans were called savage orprimitive by many psychiatrists after Reconstruction.

Dr. Lieberman's post was in response to a post that referred to Ms. Gatwech as the most beautiful black woman.

It's possible to know who the lightest person on the planet is, according to Ms. Gatwech.

I love my dark skin and nickname, Queen of Dark, she said.

Ms. Gatwech has challenged beauty standards that favor lighter skin tones and inspired other dark-skinned women to embrace their appearances.

Dark skin is normal and part of the normal variation of human existence. It hurts people.