BLOG: How to become color blind
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During the downtime of the coronavirus pandemic, all eyes have been focused on the media.
Gruesome events such as the graphic depiction of the killing of George Floyd have brought front and center the tragic discrimination that very much still exists in our world today. Racial inequality also affects the advancement of our country in both private and public sectors. Running an organization that has barriers to advancement for people of color is like running a football team in which only players with even-numbered jerseys get to play; it’s a completely artificial barrier to using our full pool of talent. Countries that don’t actively reduce this type of discrimination will simply be outsmarted by foreign competitors. For the sake of all of us, it’s time we truly make our world color blind.
As a society, I believe we can best break down barriers to social justice in the long term through better education. The United States has the undisputed finest universities in the world and spends more money than any other country on elementary and secondary education at about $12,800 per student per year, about a third more than other reporting countries, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s most recent 2018 report. As a percentage of gross domestic product, however, our education spending trails that of Norway, New Zealand, the U.K., Colombia and Chile. Our educational “product” also lags behind many other countries. The Program for International Student Assessment reports that 15-year-olds in the U.S. ranked 31st in tests of mathematics compared with other countries, and they were far below average in reading and science.
Moreover, many have appropriately criticized our education system for not adequately teaching critical thinking skills. A recently published study from the Harvard Kennedy School describes a disturbing “infodemic” arising from more people using social media as their primary news. Despite social media companies’ efforts to label and reduce misinformation, their platforms allow its propagation significantly more frequently and potently than traditional news media. The best defense against misinformation is to equip young people with critical thinking skills to challenge nonsense. Furthermore, it’s hard to be a critical thinker and racist at the same time. A better educated society with better critical thinking skills is simply more open to working with people of diverse backgrounds. An improved education system would expose students to the virtues of diversity. This is not a quick fix. Short-term efforts to battle social injustice are certainly warranted, but short-term solutions rarely serve long-standing problems.
In eye care, we can become color blind by diversifying the entrants to our residency programs. We practice in one of the most desired specialties, so if our residencies don’t reflect the full color spectrum of our country, it’s our own fault. We can more or less choose the applicants we want. And there are plenty of well-qualified African Americans, Latinos and other minorities waiting for a spot. Thankfully, the Association for University Professors of Ophthalmology has made diversity a top priority for future residency classes. Entering their practices, these future ophthalmologists will hire paraprofessionals and support staff who reflect their own diversity. We must also welcome minorities to publish and speak at meetings. I’m pleased to report that for a number of years there has been a concerted effort among all publishers, corporate sponsors and meeting organizers to diversify the gender, racial and ethnic background of key opinion leaders.
Advancing technology is permitting most of us to live much higher-quality and longer lives. In the future, the countries that lead the world in innovation and know-how will be those that embrace meaningful change as it relates to racial and ethnic advancement. Our collective future depends on it.
Reference:
- Bridgman A, et al. The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) Misinformation Review. 2020;doi:10.37016/mr-2020-028.
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