Gender, New Technologies and Development

Abstract

Marsha J. Tyson Darling reflects on how new and emerging technology serve ideological, political, social, cultural and gendered interests. She argues progress on social justice and the social norms which are embedded in a public domain is increasingly being sacrificed to legal- and market-based norms in the new genomics-based consumerism that defines the current new and emerging technologies. Her focus is on the gendered dimensions of ‘red biotechnologies,’ particularly the legacy of using women's bodies and risking women's health to pursue largely unregulated biotechnologies. Development (2006) 49, 23–27. doi:10.1057/palgrave.development.1100318

Reproducing while Black: the crisis of Black maternal health, obstetric racism and assisted reproductive technology

“…In other instances, critics of ART focus on how advantage can be taken of people. Historian Marsha J. Tyson Darling argues that the biotechnology industry has the power and potential to exploit and subjugate people based on race, class, disability, age, sexuality and gender ( Darling, 2006 ). It was not until the mid-2000s that we saw academics exploring the topic of reproduction, race and racism ( Bridges, 2011 ; Mullings and Wali, 2001 ) with increased attention to the fact that racialized groups were a market for ART-related procedures ( Roberts, 2009 ).…”

Avoiding the Trust Deficit: Public Engagement, Values, the Precautionary Principle and the Future of Nanotechnology

“…Ensuring a just distribution of both the opportunities and the risks of new technology is the expectation of a democratic society and also the best way to ensure sustainability of technical innovations. A narrow focus on what is currently known about nano S&T without reference to social norms and values and associated justice and ethical issues may only contribute to a long list of empty promises associated with other great advances in science (Darling 2006;Mekel 2006;Mittal 2006;Mooney 2006). Nano S&T innovations have the capacity to bridge the worlds of the "haves" and "the have-nots", both locally and globally.…”

Gender and Justice in the Gene Age: The Challenges Presented by Reproductive and Genetic Biotechnologies

“…On the other hand, scientists, biotech and pharmaceutical corporate leaders in the medical industrial complex are also interested in building a gene based personal wellness and health care industry based on embryonic stem cell therapies, products, and protocols. They desire women's embryos and ova as sources of stem cells, not for fertility, but for research applications towards what has been coined 'regenerative medicine' (Darling 2006;Dickenson 2001Dickenson , 2002bRadin 1996).…”

“…So either one has an 'enhanced' designer baby, or the In-vitro industry can sell you one; either way, one could chase perfection as an ideological goal for human reproduction (Darling 2006). Dating to the 1990s, a number of influential voices have gone on record as being committed to a consumer driven Eugenics agenda and a post-human future:…”