AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) President and CEO David J. Skorton, MD, and AAMC Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer David A. Acosta, MD, issued the following statement in the wake of recent allegations of racism in academic medicine:
“Historical and contemporary examples of anti-Black racism continue to impact our Black medical students, residents, researchers, and faculty in academic medicine. The AAMC remains committed to addressing and dismantling racism within our association, in academic medicine, and in society.
For far too long, the burden to end racism has been placed on the shoulders of those most impacted. As leaders of academic medical institutions, we must critically examine our policies, procedures, and systems, identify all manifestations of systemic racism, and dismantle these practices. Diverse leadership matters, and it is time to amplify opportunities to promote more Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) into leadership positions and validate and respect their authority. We must hold ourselves and our institutions accountable to fight for racial justice.
The AAMC will continue to explore and implement meaningful and productive ways to work within organized medicine on actionable strategies. We have established a framework for addressing and eliminating racism in academic medicine, and our new strategic plan has a strong focus on supporting and leading the nation’s medical schools, teaching hospitals, and health systems in becoming more inclusive and equitable organizations.
As we stated in our June 1, 2020 statement, ‘we must acknowledge and speak out against all forms of racism, discrimination, and bias in our environments in our institutions, communities and society.’ Efforts to change are long overdue, and we must all work together to make this change happen. We have not wavered from our commitment, and we stand ready to assist our member institutions in anti-racist work ahead.”