June Jackson Christmas (June 7, 1924 – December 31, 2023) was an American psychiatrist. She served as New York City Commissioner of Mental Health and Mental Retardation Services,[1] member of President Jimmy Carter transition team,[2] the beneficiary of Human-Services Award,[3] the founder of a community psychiatric program in Harlem - Harlem Rehabilitation Center.[4][5] Christmas served as a member of Governor Mario Cuomo's Advisory Committee on Black Affairs.
Christmas served as vice-president of the American Psychiatric Association and the president of the Public Health Association of NYC.[6] In 1999, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award by the National Medical Fellowships. She also was a member of Vassar's Board of Trustees from 1978 to 1989.[7] She was a former executive director of the Urban Issues Group, an organization with focus on issues specific to New Yorkers of African descent.[8]
Early life and education edit
June Jackson Christmas was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts on June 7, 1924.[9] She experienced racism during her childhood, including being denied a prize for selling the most Girl Scout cookies, denied entrance to a roller skating rink, and denied membership in the National Honor Society despite being class salutatorian.[10]
Christmas was one of the first Black students admitted to Vassar College, where she graduated with a B.S. in zoology.[11][12][13] She then earned a medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine.[13] She also earned a certificate in psychoanalysis from the William Alanson White Institute.[13]
Career edit
Christmas left private practice to set up the Harlem Hospital Rehabilitation Center and to teach at Columbia University. Her achievements with the Rehabilitation Center were later honored with awards:
- in 1974 with Human Services Award[3]
- in 1976 with Award for Excellence in the Field of Domestic Health of the American Public Health Association[14]
Christmas was appointed Commissioner of Mental Health and Mental Retardation Services on August 16, 1972, by New York Mayor John Lindsay.[15] In 1976 she was part of the Jimmy Carter presidential campaign as a health advisor, and subsequently as part the Carter transition team, leading the transition of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare from Republican to Democratic hands.[2] In 1978 Mayor Ed Koch reappointed Christmas as the city's Commissioner of Mental Health, Mental Retardation.[16]
Personal life and death edit
Christmas and her husband Walter had three children and four grandchildren.[12] She died of heart failure in The Bronx, New York City, on December 31, 2023, at the age of 99.[9]
References edit
- ^ Schumach, Murray (December 18, 1973). "Beame Names 2 Women And Lazar to High Posts (Published 1973)" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ a b Times, Nancy Hicks Special to The New York (December 5, 1976). "NEW YORK AIDE HEADS CARTER'S H.E.W. TEAM (Published 1976)" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ a b Edwards, Russell (May 26, 1974). "Future Social Events (Published 1974)" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ Barbanel, Josh (November 6, 2009). "Overtaken by a School (Published 2009)" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ "Vassar College:Each One Teach One".
- ^ "Health Care in U.S. Is Called Inadequate (Published 1980)". October 21, 1980 – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ "Communications - Vassar College". communications.vassar.edu.
- ^ "June Jackson Christmas". February 22, 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-02-22.
- ^ a b Roberts, Sam (January 4, 2024). "June Jackson Christmas, Pioneering Psychiatrist, Dies at 99". The New York Times. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
- ^ StoryCorps (December 20, 2016). "June Jackson Christmas: The Making of an Activist". New York Academy of Medicine. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ Sanders, Joshunda (April 12, 2015). "Pioneering Activism: A Conversation with Dr. June Jackson Christmas '45-4, an excerpt". Vassar, the Alumnae. Vassar College. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
- ^ a b Randolph, Elizabeth (January 5, 2024). "We Remember June Jackson Christmas '45-4, Groundbreaking Psychiatrist and Ardent Supporter of the Vassar Community". Vassar College. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
- ^ a b c Veenstra-VanderWeele, Jeremy (January 9, 2024). "Columbia Psychiatry Remembers Dr. June Jackson Christmas". Columbia University Department of Psychiatry. Columbia University. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
- ^ "American Public Health Association Award Recipients".
- ^ Hicks, Nancy (August 17, 1972). "CITY MENTAL CHIEF A BLACK WOMAN (Published 1972)" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ "Dr. Christmas Wins A New Appointment To City Health Post (Published 1978)". January 15, 1978 – via NYTimes.com.