The Challenges and Impact of Human Genome Research for Minority Communities

proceedings from a conference presented by
Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., National Educational Foundation
July 7-8, 2000, Philadelphia, PA

Zeta Background
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Foreword
Zeta NEF Purpose

Conference
Conference Mission
Conference Objectives
Research Plans
Conference Agenda
Conference Summary
Workshop I Summary
Workshop II Summary
Workshop III Summary
What's Next?
Photographs
Human Genome News article

Presenters
Dr. Aristides A. Patrinos
Dr. John Quackenbush
Dr. Georgia M. Dunston
Dr. Mary Kay Pelias
Dr. Fatimah Jackson
Dr. Christopher Adams
Dr. Rosalind P. Hale
Dr. Margaret C. Werner-Washburne
Rev. Dr. Deborah P. Wolfe
Dr. Jeroo S. Kotval
Betty K. Mansfield
Issie L. Shelton Jenkins, Esq.
Phyllis Griffin Epps, Esq.
Dr. Kathryn T. Malvern

Contact Information
Board of Managers
Presenters
National Educational Foundation

The changes in perspective brought about by this new information have led to completely novel avenues of scientific investigation and a revolution in the way science is done. The accumulation of orders of magnitude more data has required that biologists work with computer scientists and mathematicians. The need for new technology has led to increasing interactions between biologists and engineers, physicists and chemists. The ethical questions brought about by this new biology, has brought biologists into collaborations with sociologists, educators and political scientists. The potential financial value of discoveries in this area has led to more interactions with industry and law. Thus, genomics can be viewed as a thread – a revolutionary thread that is connecting the patches of our academic quilt more firmly than ever before.

As an area of scientific research, genomics is growing rapidly and represents a revolution in technology and its applications. The market for the fruits of genomics can be counted in the billions of dollars in the pharmaceutical industry alone. Major changes in agricultural practices are occurring at the minute, with the use of genetically engineered seeds that may reduce the use of pesticides and herbicides and change the sociology of farming. Discoveries in human health, the environment, and evolution are being made daily. Entirely new job markets have been created, such as in the area of computational biology, where salaries are extremely competitive and the number of students we are training simply cannot meet the demand.

Yet minorities are not yet a part of this revolution. At a time when the distance between the "haves" and the "have nots" of genomics is increasing exponentially, there is not agreement at the national or local level what significant measures are needed to bridge this gap. At a time when scientists in the area of genomics are interested in studying the genetic makeup of isolated minority groups, there is not enough discussion of the importance of having minorities not just as subjects but also as researchers. We need to address what it will take to enable a student from a predominantly minority or rural school to want to participate in this revolution, or what it will take to train and support the teachers to teach these students. Families and communities may believe that by being scientists and engineers that their children are choosing to move away from them. Minority students in middle and high school frequently do not see science and math as education that enhances who they are or that empowers them within their communities.

The genomic revolution can be seen as a challenge and an opportunity for minority communities. For children form underrepresented groups to have the opportunity to participate in and contribute to an increasingly technologically sophisticated world, communities need to be able to work together, to communicate across ethnic lines, to determine what the needs and the possibilities are. Genomics is a challenge for us, we need to understand this revolution on order to have a voice in it. We need to work with our children to understand that scientific literacy is a valuable way to learn about the economic development of our communities. There are many important ways in which genomics is going to touch our lives and many different kinds of jobs that are possible in this area. The doors are wide open for students who are academically prepared and empowered. The big question is what can and needs to be done to ensure that the children from your community and all of our communities can take advantage of the moment for themselves, their children and us?