The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center is hosting influential surgeon Dr. Alvin Crawford to reflect on a trailblazing life in conversation with UC medical student Abraham Araya, punctuated with live jazz music. The event coincides with the release of Dr. Crawford’s memoir The Bone Doctor’s Concerto: Music, Surgery and the Pieces in Between and will include live music from UC’s College Conservatory of Music jazz quartet.
Dr. Crawford is one of Cincinnati’s most influential leaders in medicine and his story is one of resilience and ambition. Growing up in the segregated South, he overcame systemic and very personal incidents of racism. He spent years playing in jazz bands throughout the Jim Crow South, making a music degree as appealing as a medical degree. He became the University of Tennessee College of Medicine’s first African American student in 1960 and then traveled the world as a surgeon for the U.S. Navy before settling in Cincinnati, where he established the Comprehensive Pediatric Orthopedic Clinic at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, the first in the region.
The program begins at 6 p.m., followed by a reception with the UC College Conservatory of Music jazz quartet and book signing with Dr. Crawford at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5 for Freedom Center Members and $10 for general public. Tickets are available at freedomcenter.org.