Sacramento Medical Students Stage Die In

The students dropped to the ground to protest grand jury decisions in New York and Missouri over the deaths of unarmed black men at the hands of white police officers. The Sacramento protest was held at the UC Davis Medical School.

One of the student leaders who organized it was Lucy Ogbu Nwobodo. She appeared on Insight with Beth Ruyak Wednesday.

"The issues that we've been hearing about in the national discourse have affected all of us," said Nwobodo. "We decided to come together as one voice to speak up about these issues. We believe that because it affects our patients outside of the hospital it's just as important as what we see in the medical clinics."

Nwobodo said the issue is larger than policing and violence.

"Our overall focus is to look at the relationship between violence and health," said Nwobodo. "We think of these issues as public health issues and not just of social reform. And we want to create an opportunity for meaningful and open dialogue about these issues and how they affect our patient populations."

Dozens of people at the UCD Med School took part along with students at other medical schools around the country.

Photos by: Andrew Nixon / Capital Public Radio