DTC genetic testing Research Papers (original) (raw)

In the era of rising biotech corporations integrating into the medical landscape, how can we imagine a future for non-normative bodyminds? In this thesis I work to map the multiple histories and present realities that are shaping society’s views not only on direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing kits, but also on societal conceptualizations of “health” and disability through an in-depth case study of the biotech company 23andMe located in Mountain View, California. Here I draw from multiple areas of scholarship to contextualize DTC kits, such as eugenic histories in the United States, medical experimentation, sterilization, reproductive justice work, critiques of genealogical race testing kits, and queer and crip theory. Moreover, these areas of research elucidate how the concept of “health” has been constructed, how differences in intersecting identities play a role in whose bodyminds are policed and eradicated, and how various non-normative and minoritarian identities have been labelled as “unhealthy,” “unfit,” and “disabled” historically and currently. Therefore, this contextualization is necessary, as histories of eugenics impact all non-normative bodyminds, that is, people who are not white, cisgender, heterosexual, male, ablebodied/ableminded, Christian, U.S. citizens, thin and middle- or upper-class.
Further, through analysis of 23andMe’s social media sites, advertisements, website and blogsite I showcase how 23andMe markets itself and its DTC Health and Ancestry kit, which bodyminds are represented in their advertisements, as well as how the company discusses health and disability. Additionally, I analyze media and academic journal articles from 2006-2018 to understand how U.S. societal views about 23andMe and the DTC kits have changed over time, how disability, health and disease are discussed in relation to DTC kits, and how society’s rhetoric about 23andMe compares to how 23andMe presents itself. Together, these two axes of analysis work to show who has access to DTC kits, who the marketing audience is, and which bodyminds are being left out of the conversation. Overall, this thesis argues that 23andMe’s DTC kits are playing into harmful histories of eugenics through the erasure of disabled bodyminds from its advertising and through its continuous emphasis on curing and controlling disease and disability.