Inside Push To Make Nursing Less White And The Comment That Stands Out

America’s nurses are too white and too female, according to the influential organization that purports to represent the interests of five million nurses nationwide. 

The American Nurses Association (ANA) has become fixated on race and embraced radical political ideology over the last few years, exemplified by the organization’s former president complaining about the “rows of white ladies” who head up nursing programs. The 130-year-old organization’s recent racial activism was flagged in a scathing report, first shared with The Daily Wire, by Do No Harm. 

The association plays a key role in advocating for nurses by increasing research and funding, carrying out workplace advocacy, and advocating for better pay for nurses. The ANA is the membership arm of the American Nurses Association Enterprise. Despite its important function, Do No Harm argues the medical body has been infected with ideology, with an acceleration around the time of the 2020 riots. 

Do No Harm argues that the organization should revert to its former focus on representing nurses rather than pushing racial politics. 

“The ANA’s descent into extremism is alarming and has contributed to the indoctrination of our nation’s most important frontline workers,” Dr. Kurt Miceli, chief medical officer at Do No Harm, told The Daily Wire. “Instead of working to train and support hardworking nurses, the ANA has dedicated time and resources to promoting the ideas of radical activists. Nursing, at its core, is a profession that seeks to serve patients with compassion and foster healing.”

One of the culprits pushing the association to embrace racial ideology was the organization’s former president, Ernest Grant, now the vice dean for diversity, equity, and inclusion at Duke University School of Nursing, according to his LinkedIn. Do No Harm said that the politicization of the association increased during Grant’s leadership of the organization. 

After he was elected to head the organization, Grant said that he would be focused on encouraging “diversity in the nursing profession,” suggesting the nursing profession was too white and too female. 

“In 2015, only 19.5% of RNs in the workforce identified themselves as minorities, and only about 12% of baccalaureate and graduate nursing students in 2016 were men,” he said in 2018. “It’s important that the nursing workforce reflects the diversity of our patient populations.”

Following the death of convicted felon George Floyd, Grant said that racism was a “longstanding public health crisis that impacts both mental and physical health” and that COVID impacted black people more than white people. He later characterized the unrest that followed the death of Floyd as “peaceful.” 

In an October 2021 podcast appearance, Grant said that he liked to tell medical school officials to pretend to be a different race or gender to push their understanding of diversity. He also said he was “taking steps” to try to change how the nursing profession was predominantly white and female.

He told deans and directors of nursing programs to “imagine themselves when they pull into their assigned parking space at their place of work, when they’re getting out of the car, take on another personality, take on like a person of color or another gender.”

“And as you’re walking into your building, look at what your particular school of nursing is saying to someone who may be from a different background or a different gender,” he continued. “Is it welcoming? Or do you just see rows and rows of white ladies who were deans, either they’re former deans or current deans of the program? What about your faculty? Does your faculty represent diversity? And are there people of color there? Are there men on the faculty there as well?”

“I mean, nursing is over 80% white and about 80% female, and of course, that’s what you see on TV. So, we are taking steps to try to change that by encouraging more nurses of color or people of color to go into nursing as a profession and more men as well to consider the nursing profession,” he added.

During Grant’s tenure, the American Nurses Association helped launch the National Commission to Address Racism in Nursing (NCARN) with the purpose of motivating “all nurses to confront individual and systemic racism.”

The organization claims that “racism is historically rooted in the nursing profession and continues today.” The organization blames the number of white nurses on “actions from predominantly white groups and others who may view themselves or their group as superior” and alleges that white nurses “are advantaged and privileged by unfair structural and systemic practices.”

To define racism, the commission relies on the work of radical leftist Ibram X. Kendi, the author of the book “How To Be An Anti-Racist.” The commission produced a list of the “Top Ten Ways to be an Antiracist in Nursing,” which ironically suggests that people should stop “labeling others” and “distribute power.” 

American Nurses Association.

In June 2022, the American Nurses Association put out a “racial reckoning” statement that pledged the organization’s board of directors to “continue to reckon with and apologize for past harms that are made known to ANA,” and implement DEI analysis through all programs of the association. It said the association would continue to work with the commission to “create antiracist practices and environments,” implement DEI, and provide “transparency” to the racial makeup of the association’s leadership. 

Starting in March 2022, the ANA rolled out a series of trainings called “Equity in Action: Dismantling Racism in Nursing.” During one session, Georgetown dean of nursing Roberta Waite gave a presentation on “How do we ensure health equity in a society built on white supremacy and oppression?” Waite shared a slide placing “white supremacy” at the center of oppression surrounded by things like “capitalism,” “nationalism,” “religious supremacy,” “patriarchy,” and “heterosexual supremacy.” 

Another slide featured in her presentation included the “Intersectionality wheel of privilege.” The slide claims that white people are the most privileged in society. Waite claimed that people in the “inner circle” of privilege have been “hypnotized” into thinking society is “merit-based.” 

American Nurses Association.

A separate presentation from San Diego State University assistant professor Danisha Jenkins was called “Is anti-racist care possible under capitalism?” and featured a quote from leftist Eleanor Marx, the daughter of communist Karl Marx.

American Nurses Association.

“America’s nurses should have an organization that is focused on supporting their training and development as world-class health care providers, not creating a training ground for foot soldiers in a political battle,” Miceli said. 

As documented by Do No Harm, interpretive statements in the ANA’s code of ethics for nurses have been updated from 2015 to 2025 to include political language. For example, the “Respect for Human Dignity” statement was updated with language on “ableism, ageism, classism, heterosexism, sexism,” and a statement of commitment to patients asserts that states have laws  that “prohibit treatment for persons who are pregnant, undocumented, uninsured, gender diverse, or otherwise disenfranchised, marginalized, or socially stigmatized.”

Do No Harm.

While the 2015 statement contained zero references to “racism,” or “anti-racism,” the 2025 version contained 15 references to those words. Similarly, there were seven references to “allyship” when the original code did not mention the word at all. 

The ANA’s political action committee also has a history of donating more money to Democratic candidates. 

Do No Harm.

In 2026, the American Nurses Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the American Nurses Association Enterprise, announced it would be handing out health equity awards. Applicants must “demonstrate an understanding of and embrace health equity, social justice, anti-racism, and cultural humility” and show how they advance “health equity.” 

While there are approximately 5 million nurses across the United States, there are only around 190,000 members of the American Nurses Association, according to an email obtained by Do No Harm.

Do No Harm said that nurses should fight back against the politicization of their profession 

“It’s up to nurses to take back their organization, and ultimately, their profession,” Do No Harm wrote in the report. “Nurses do have a substantial collective voice, and it is well past time to use it in defense of the profession.”