Critical Race Feminist Bioethics: Telling Stories in Law School and Medical School in Pursuit of "Cultural Competency"

A SISTERSONG BALLAD (1) I know Sisters. I know Sisters who lived lives full enough to be stories- "Her-stories" untold, Carried through the heartbeat of mother's wit. , all the time being "othered" by legal fictions that turn humans to chattel property; Allowing her and "her-story" to be created, bought and sold. I know Sisters. Sister Anarcha got a story for all to take heed. Her-story cuts so deep, make you bear down, close your eyes and legs. Once you hear how her private was made public, With fine silver wires sewn together without anesthesia, Just like she was broke and needed fixin' in order to breed. I know Sisters. Sister Betsey got a story make your head spin around twice. Her-story led to the development of the urinary catheter, Yet another invention--pulled on and sewn up Perfected on her "othered" existence, Amounting to a historically accepted, but marginalized vice. I know Sisters. Sister Lucy got a story that laid the foundation for the medical specialty of gynecology, Her-story gave meaning to a pewter spoon, Both ends bent and inserted to open "the way" To see fistulas evidencing the truth About 'property' bearing human crop, Resulting in a prototype for both you and me. I know Sisters. I know Sisters who know Sisters who lived lives full and deep enough to be stories- "Her- stories" Seeing the light of day, heard through lyrics in her song All the time being centered by her-storical accuracies; Allowing Sisters to tell "her-story" In her rhythm and blues, soulful gospel, Jazzed up by the hip-hop, caught up in the rap-ture. As only a Sister can, in her own words, in her own way. I know Sisters. I know Sisters who write their own sister song ballads, As reproductive wrongs twist and shout, To revere the lives lived of Sisters past, and lives to be lived of Sisters present And for the life of every Sister yet to come; Whose lives together compose the "Her-stories" Worthy to be song about. INTRODUCTION This article examines how slavery (2) and the concept of race (3) intersect with gender (4) to construct a distinct notion of science and technology that has been historically marginalized at best. The particular aspect of "science" that I explore is the development of the medical specialty of gynecology (5) in the United States. I specifically look at "technology," historically referred to as Sims's (6) instruments, Sims's gynecological innovations (7), and Sims's inventions, (8) circa 1845-1849, which are still used today. I argue that the particularized and unique experiences of enslaved Black women have been traditionally viewed as extracting assets from her body in the form of a "crop of human labor" (9) in the historically referred to role as a so-called "breeder. " (10) The focal point of this article is to explore a means to address the impact of continuing to tell the narrative on the development of the medical specialty of gynecology in the United States without the benefit of a "herstorical" lens. The reproductive and surgical exploitation meted upon three enslaved women, Anarcha, Betsey, and Lucy, among other un-named enslaved Black women, "othered" (11) their skin based upon a construction of "race," yet "samed" their bodies for purposes of extracting reproductive knowledge, surgical inventions, and innovations to benefit all women. (12) The story of Anarcha, Betsey, and Lucy is the marginalized story of how the laws of enslavement sanctioned medical experimentation and exploitation upon the bodies of Black women. I posit that the telling of Anarcha, Betsey, and Lucy's narrative (13) in medical schools will aid current efforts to attain cultural competency. (14) The bioethics (15) principle of truth-telling (16) is traditionally viewed from the doctor-patient relationship, however, existing racial and ethnic reproductive health care disparities mandate culturally competent training from a critical race feminist (17) perspective that suggest historical truth-telling in medical schools to students through the use of narrative (18) as a modality. …