Hopkins should name a building for Vivien Thomas

Thanks to last week's news coverage, many have heard of the new Sheikh Zayed and Charlotte R. Bloomberg Center at Johns Hopkins Hospital, but there is another building at Hopkins that remains largely unknown: the Blalock Clinical Science Building. Two years ago, I watched the PBS documentary, "Partners of the Heart" during a tour of Johns Hopkins with a small group of students. It showed how two men, Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas, equally contributed to help save the lives of 170,000 children suffering from blue baby syndrome. Blalock received worldwide recognition and the above building in his name, while Thomas was recognized decades later with an honorary degree and a portrait. The reason is that Vivien Thomas was an African American who worked during times of segregation.

Recently, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Sheikh Zayed were both equally recognized for their millions of dollars donation to the Johns Hopkins. Vivien Thomas did not have millions of dollars, but he rose from being a janitor to becoming a must-have surgical partner for Dr. Blalock. Why not let Thomas also enjoy equal recognition for his contributions by renaming the above-mentioned building as Blalock-Thomas Clinical Science Building?

Sinaan Younus, Perry Hall

The writer is a 5th grade student at Chapel Hill Elementary School.