Bioethics Cannot Afford to "Shut up and Dribble"

Authors

  • Keisha S. Ray McGovern Center for Humanities and Ethics, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Texas, United States of America https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7010-5006
  • Alexandra Olmos Perez Provincial Health Services Authority, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada https://orcid.org/0009-0000-3441-5296

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7202/1122839ar

Keywords:

diversity, equity, inclusion, DEI, bioethicists, professional identity

Language(s):

English

Abstract

Bioethics’ sense of justice often manifests itself as what has become known as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) values. As more DEI programs and initiatives are targeted, many bioethicists are being told some variation of “keep quiet about DEI and just do your job.” When bioethicists are told to abandon or “tone down” DEI a few things follow: 1) our job of challenging and questioning the morality of our collective and individual actions and encouraging others to do the same is ignored; 2) our professional identity and values are rewritten and weaponized against us; and 3) our socially situated identities outside our practice as bioethicists are disregarded; however, there is no bioethics without DEI work.

References

1. Baker R. Before Bioethics: A History of American Medical Ethics from the Colonial Period to the Bioethics Revolution. New York: Oxford University Press; 2013.

2. Baker R. Making Modern Medical Ethics: How African Americans, Anti-Nazis, Bureaucrats, Feminists, Veterans, and Whistleblowing Moralists Created Bioethics. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press; 2024.

3. Sullivan E. Laura Ingraham told Lebron James to shut up and dribble; he went to the hoop. NPR. 19 Feb 2018.

© Han Han Li

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Published

2026-01-20

How to Cite

[1]
Ray KS, Perez AO. Bioethics Cannot Afford to "Shut up and Dribble". Can. J. Bioeth 2026;9:11-3. https://doi.org/10.7202/1122839ar.

Issue

Vol. 9 No. 1 (2026): Advocates, Activists, Architects of Moral Space?

Section

Perspectives

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Keisha S. Ray, Alexandra Olmos Perez

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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