Counter the weaponization of genetics research by extremists
By Jedidiah Carlson, Brenna M. Henn, Dana R. Al-Hindi, and Sohini Ramachandran,
Nature
| 10. 19. 2022
Unsplash
Nature has published a special issue on racism and science, which includes this article.
Earlier this year, we were appalled to see a figure from a paper co-authored by one of us (S.R.) displayed in a 180-page screed that was used by an avowed white supremacist to justify his massacre of ten Black people at a shop in Buffalo, New York.
Even before then, we had noticed that our work on patterns of global genetic diversity in humans was increasingly being invoked in online discussions among those who support white nationalist ideology. For example, a 2014 study on the origins of present-day Europeans (co-authored by B.M.H.) continues to be mentioned regularly by Twitter users who deploy neo-Nazi symbols and imagery in their biographies.
There is growing awareness among geneticists and other researchers that the latest resurgence of white supremacy is being driven, in part, by the far right co-opting scientific findings. In fact, over the past five years or so, numerous scientists, editorial boards, scientific societies and research consortia have published statements denouncing the misuse of research by those...
Related Articles
By Jonathan D. Grinstein, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News | 06.26.2024
Partial screenshot from The Bridge Recombination Mechanism
video by The Arc Institute on YouTube (CC)
Buried in a family of mobile genetic elements, Arc Institute researchers led by Patrick Hsu, PhD, have discovered an RNA-guided system that enables modular...
By Carl Zimmer, The New York Times | 05.31.2024
Last year, Jaume Pellicer led a team of fellow scientists into a forest on Grande Terre, an island east of Australia. They were in search of a fern called Tmesipteris oblanceolata. Standing just a few inches tall, it was not...
By Liz Szabo, The New York Times | 05.29.2024
By the time Rena Barrow-Wells gave birth to her fourth baby in 2020, she was well-versed in caring for a child with cystic fibrosis. She was also experienced in fighting for a diagnosis of the disease, which runs in families...
By Alison Snyder, Axios | 06.06.2024
Gene editing's next chapter will be focused on tackling cancers and more common diseases, uncovering new details about aging and other fundamental aspects of biology and editing RNA, top scientists in the field said this week.
The big picture: ...