On Sept. 21, 1983, Sickle Cell Month was officially recognized nationally when the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed the resolution, introduced by the Congressional Black Caucus, asking President Reagan to designate September as “National Sickle Cell Anemia Awareness Month.”

Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder that affects red blood cells. People with sickle cell disease have red blood cells that contain mostly hemoglobin S, an abnormal type of hemoglobin. Sometimes these red blood cells become sickle-shaped (crescent shaped) and have difficulty passing through small blood vessels. When sickle-shaped cells block small blood vessels, less blood can reach that part of the body. Tissue that does not receive a normal blood flow eventually becomes damaged.

Sickle Cell Disease Awareness Month originated in 1975 when the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America and its Member Organizations began conducting month long events to call attention to sickle cell disease and the need to address the problem at national and local levels.