Lansing Resident Recordsdata Criticism Towards Sparrow With Michigan Division Of Civil Rights

A Lansing resident filed a complaint with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights after a Sparrow Hospital employee and her son allegedly racist attacks.

Tashmica Torok said a division chief at Sparrow Hospital gave a comment to her 17-year-old son when he received his COVID-19 vaccine.

“One person in charge of vaccinating my son made statements to him that he had become a police officer after multiple murders of black and brown people by police violence across the country,” she said.

According to Torok, the supervisor went out of his way to let her son know that being a police officer is difficult these days. She believes he was targeted because he is black.

“We don’t live in a world where even my black 17-year-old can get his COVID shot without facing police propaganda. And that’s not okay with me, “she said.

The incident happened the same week that Derek Chauvin was convicted of the murder of George Floyd. Torok said it shows the culture at Sparrow and the work they must do to prevent racist acts from continuing to occur.

“We really hope that Sparrow Hospital will find a way to protect members of the black and brown community from this type of toxic behavior by white supremacists,” she added.

In a statement, Sparrow Health System spokesman John Foren described the incident as a misunderstanding, adding that the hospital was working to resolve the situation.