In an open letter, Dr. Raymond Gist, who became the ADA's first African-American president in October, said the dentist group should have done a better job in making sure minorities could join affiliated state and local organizations before the mid-1960s.
"[I]n looking forward, we must also look back," Gist wrote. "Along with acknowledging past mistakes and to build a stronger, collaborative platform for future accomplishments, the ADA apologizes to dentists for not strongly enforcing non-discriminatory membership practices prior to 1965."
Michael Battle — the immediate past president of the National Dental Association, which represents more than 6,000 black dentists — says the apology gives NDA members who had been discriminated against in the past some feeling of release, and it helps both organizations move forward.
"We feel it's a great step in the right direction," he says.
