Ep 58 The Asylum: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum

In this episode, we explore Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum by Antonia Hylton, a powerful investigation into the history of Crownsville Hospital Center — a segregated psychiatric institution in Maryland that became a symbol of how race shaped mental health care in America. We trace the legacy of institutionalization, the roots of racial bias in psychiatry, and the long arc from overcrowded asylums to deinstitutionalization and modern mental health policy. Along the way, we connect this history to broader themes in medicine: early antipsychotics and “chemical lobotomies,” the story of Henrietta Lacks, the evolution of sickle cell care, and how these narratives continue to shape trust, ethics, and equity in healthcare today. Primary Book Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum — Antonia Hylton https://www.amazon.com/Madness-Race-Insanity-Crow-Asylum/dp/1538723697/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3HSZ9FXJFMSY0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.TJDt-pA529ILx4OMw1AnQrXutKdqwEXJ6O5uQKx6oqBwHsm7m-78FhcBPdNDmaznYvwURllTsLjDFdICe9nmJHuGeFHQnO4CHNscMXuDGt0rrOeiQgAvJuyyGYhsmpAD6BFi9-puBiA6Rm3YQ74M1s8uDJe_2PpoUn1Z9MtEWe8FXz8vtPT7FBhxx9e-ozCgRhY7e-5QZD06dhCSbMYzHCwxif3HKATHRyOUok95glE.nV8LnaKPXBBMVV-p4kXJdsIhUJZ5Op4YedeK1TJ1Pp8&dib_tag=se&keywords=madness+book&qid=1762537789&sprefix=madness%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-1 Crownsville & Psychiatry Psychiatry Online — Crownsville & racial inequities in mental health https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.pn.2020.8a23 Crownsville Hospital Center (Wikipedia) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crownsville_Hospital_Center Anne Arundel County — Crownsville Memorial Park https://www.aacounty.org/CrownsvillePark Audio & Journalism NPR Transcript — Crownsville and Madness https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1227498861 Related Medical & Cultural Context Henrietta Lacks (Wikipedia) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks Sickle Cell Disease overview https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sickle_cell_disease The Boondocks (Wikipedia) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boondocks_(TV_series) Rodney Barnes (Producer/Writer) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney_Barnes Psychiatry & Policy Deinstitutionalization & JFK’s Mental Health Act https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/appi.ajp-rj.2021.160404 🍸 Episode Cocktail The Asylum Cocktail — Esquire https://www.esquire.com/food-drink/drinks/recipes/a3867/asylum-cocktail-drink-recipe/ Episodes every Monday ⭐️ Subscribe, Rate and Review! 🍸 Recipes drop on socials Discounts: 15% off Comfrt apparel Purple Carrot: 40% off your first box ClassPass: 2 weeks free 15% off non-alcoholic spirits at The Zero Proof 💳 Support us on Patreon | ☕️ Buy Me a Coffee Contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.