Bloodworks

Blood is donated to achieve a paramount goal: save lives. Blood donations give you the power to save someone else’s lives because just one pint of blood can help save 3 lives. More than 75% of all Americans reaching age 72 will have to have a blood transfusion, so it’s crucial that blood donations are available for those people. Additionally, blood needs diversity in order to save as many lives as possible. 60% of Asians cannot find a matching donor because their body cannot accept anything other than blood from Asian donors, and Asians are a very small percentage of blood donors.

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Though the issue of blood donation has largely been conquered in the U.S., it still remains true that especially among minorities, finding suitable blood can be a challenge at times. The tragic death of Kirby Wong, who is believed to have built up antigens to Caucasian blood after receiving more than five hundred blood transfusions within the span of two and half weeks, is an alarming wake up call to minorities, that in the case of emergencies, suitable blood may not be available. While blood transfusions, in general, work across genetic and ethnic lines, it is almost always safer for those in need to receive blood from someone ethnically similar to them. Ourselves being Asian American, we felt the responsibility to help our own ethnic community by starting the project with the mindset of saving more lives.