Should I become an organ donor?

[amdt57]

Hello, I'm a very healthy 16 year old biracial female (black mom, white dad)...And I am getting my driver's license, and they asked if I wanted to be an organ donor. I said NO because my mother is afraid that black people are not given the same sort of medical treatment, and if I am a donor, they would just let me die on the spot to harvest my organs....Considering the history of medical malpractice against black people in things like the Tuskegee Experiment, her fears are not totally unwarranted. Is it true that blacks are not given equal medical attention, because black/biracial lives are not as valued? Should I take the risk of becoming an organ donor?

[bret11]

Ok so the chances of you dying aren't high, BUT if you were an organ donor and told your parents that you wanted your organs donated to only african americans then you both win. Just make sure someone knows your wishes. They dont let you die if your an organ donor, they still save you and they must keep you alive, with a ventilator so your organs don't die, and chances are when you are on a ventilator you are brain dead anyways with slim to none chance of coming back to a normal life. You would most likely be a vegetable the rest of your life.

[fiacre68]

Your race has absolutely nothing to do with the organ donation process. If you are taken to the hospital, they will do everything in their power to keep you alive. When the organ donation process takes place is after you have died and no longer have any need for the organs. Your organs will help numerous others who have need of them.

Please become an organ donor.