Normative errors—a conversation with my daughter about current events

**Peter Attia** (0:00)
Hey folks, welcome to a special episode that deals with kind of the aftermath and some of the questions that are surrounding us in the wake of the brutal death of George Floyd. A lot of people have been speaking about this in their own way, choosing to post various things on social media. I've never really thought I had much to offer with respect to doing stuff like that. For me, it's been a very difficult couple of days kind of just thinking about this stuff and not really knowing how to explain it to my daughter who has been asking a lot of questions about it. And I kind of wrestled with this idea of doing a podcast or not. And in the end, I sort of decided this evening after dinner that I was gonna do this. So Olivia and I sat down for maybe 20 minutes or something to talk about stuff that we have been talking about all week. And I really wanted to talk more in terms of something that I had some knowledge of. I don't consider myself an expert in law enforcement, racism, the history of police brutality, all of the things that might factor into this. But there is one area that I do think I have some knowledge in that I can speak to, and it has to do with the training of physicians. And there's something I've thought a lot about.
So I approached this conversation with Olivia as I often approach conversations with her, which is sort of touching on a framework and an understanding, then maybe that's broader than this problem. As with all podcasts, of course, I can't address all things, and that's more true in this podcast than probably any podcast I'll ever produce. But I do talk about one very particular way that I think about what's going on, and perhaps more importantly, how we can start to get a handle on it. This podcast might not be for you. If it doesn't resonate with you, I apologize, but I think that for some folks, especially folks with kids who are struggling to kind of explain to them what's going on, perhaps you'll find this helpful.
Hi, Olivia. Thanks for sitting down to talk for a few minutes tonight.
So there's been a lot going on for the last few days, and I know you're in the middle of finals, and I know that if that weren't enough, you've got a quarantine going on that you're probably kind of at your wits end with, but tell me a little bit about how you feel about the last few days and how you've heard about it and what you and your friends are talking about.

**Olivia** (2:12)
At first, I was seeing it on everyone's Instagram, Justice for George, and I was confused. I was like, what is that? And then I started looking it up, and I was like, whoa, this just happened.
And then I started reading articles about it to see what happened. And this is the first time that I've actually heard about something like this that's happened recently, because the only ever times I've heard about it is when I was younger and I don't remember it.
But everyone that I text is sending like Black Lives Matter, and they're all doing different color fists. And I think that's great that they're noticing what's happening. And I just don't understand how this could happen, because when people judge you about the color of your eyes, what's the difference with skin color?

**Peter Attia** (2:54)
I mean, it's a very complicated question, Olivia, and it goes back hundreds of years. And you know how the other day we were talking about all the different things in school that I'm really looking forward to you learning in greater detail? Well, one of those things is history.
And I don't think you've yet really fully understood the history of how Black people came to this country.
And what terms that was under, and what conditions of racism produced it and allowed it to continue for literally hundreds of years.
And I hope that when you get to studying history, you will understand that it's not just about taking tests and passing tests and getting answers or writing essays, but it's about really understanding the systemic nature of racism.
I want to tell you an interesting story that I've never told you before. I don't think I've ever told mom this story either. So I kind of have slightly different skin color, right? Like if you look at me, you know I'm not perfectly white. I'm not black. I mean, I kind of look like I look like I'm something, right?