An Open Letter to American Academic Institutions: Stand Behind the Evidence

The last several years of American life have left us reeling from a pandemic that overwhelmed our healthcare system and killed over one million Americans, due to an ineffectual public health response made controversial by American politics.^1,2 The pandemic response has been complicated by an ongoing battle in our nation between scientific experts and evidence and political opinion. This is not unique to COVID-19, however. Several major public health crises are touted as controversial – despite decisive evidence otherwise.

Reproductive rights and freedoms have been seized, severely limiting access to life-saving procedures and medication for nearly one-third of Americans of reproductive age.^3,4 Little has been done to combat the intensifying climate crisis that already affects more than 60% of Americans, most recently with the extreme weather in the West, and hurricanes battering the Southeast.^5,6,7 We have seen blatant reminders of the racial violence and oppressive history of our country, rife in our healthcare system where Black women have maternal death rates up to 12x higher than White women.^8,9 The gun violence epidemic injures or kills 22 children each day, and the opioid crisis killed more than 100,000 people in 2021, alone.^10,11 In an America that has heavily politicized these public health issues, academic institutions have faltered in their responsibility to stand behind the evidence. If these institutions remain silent on critical issues and fail to provide a comprehensive education to the students representing the future of the nation, the preventable loss of life will continue.

As graduate students and healthcare providers in Boston and New York City, we are trained to communicate with our patients, clients, and colleagues in an ‘evidence based’ manner – by “conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of current best evidence”.¹²  Far too often, the words and actions of our nation’s academic institutions contrast this fundamental principle that they teach. American schools are pillars of American society – centers of knowledge and research – and Americans take note of their stances, relying on them for information and guidance. Furthermore, we expect individuals who achieve a higher education to translate science into policy. In schools’ attempts to remain impartial, however, public health issues are perpetually politicized, and both society and its leaders hold the perception that these issues have little to no scientific or factual support. This false notion manipulates our sociopolitical atmosphere.

Despite the life-threatening effects of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization  ruling, colleges and universities across the country wavered in their responses.^13-17 In the face of extreme climate destruction, lawmakers and leading education centers waver in their decisions over fossil fuel use and divestment, and oil lobbyists are allowed to spend inconceivable funds to protect their own interests over our environment.^18-21 Although evidence-based practices clearly indicate the value of harm reduction practices to address the opioid overdose epidemic, the reality of American policy strays far from this approach.²² Despite the drastic impacts of race on health outcomes, only seven state legislatures have declared racism a public health crisis.²³ There were 646 mass shootings in 2022, yet in a poll of Senate Republicans’ opinions on background check measures, 31 of the 50 gave no response or deflected in their response.^24,25

American academic centers bear responsibility for these interconnected crises due to their failure to educate and advise based on evidence and facts.²⁶ We need bold, loud, specific guidance from our educators to effect positive change for our future.

Many students expect these bold stances, but they are seldom taken, out of schools’ concern about upsetting other students, benefactors, and supporters. Institutions waver in taking a position that – despite being backed by concrete scientific evidence, human rights, and basic human dignity – American society and political discourse deem  ‘controversial’. We recognize that there are times when science may be unclear. We further acknowledge that controversy, public disagreement, and logical arguments are vital to a democratic process. However, when the science is clear, and conclusions can be made from evidence, we expect academic institutions to declare that these issues are not controversial at all. Any institution participating in education, healthcare, or scientific advancement is morally obligated to defend human rights, operate based on scientific evidence, and speak out against the regressive and oppressive policies our nation experiences today.

To that effect – in the hopes that adherence to reason becomes the norm – we present the facts:

1. While individual decisions about terminating a pregnancy may vary, evidence unilaterally supports abortion as necessary healthcare that is fundamental to reproductive justice.^27-29
2. Tremendous evidence proves the relationship between human activity and the climate crisis, and shows that the crisis is worsening and will devastatingly impact the human species, as well as the planet in its entirety.^30-32
3. Insurmountable evidence demonstrates the existence of racism, and its implications on health and society.^33-35
4. Despite the evidence proving its efficacy, leaders refuse to pass and implement common sense firearm legislation that would prevent the epidemic of gun violence in schools and communities.^36–38
5. Hundreds of thousands of deaths have been linked to the opioid overdose epidemic in this country, and yet governments fail to implement effective, evidence-based public health interventions.^39-41

We are calling on all academic institutions to take definitive stances in staunch support of the facts and evidence.

Our society requires academic institutions – whose members and stances hold significant influence – to provide reason and evidence to guide the way our society functions and direct us toward a brighter, more just future.