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Objectives: We re‐envision dentistry's social contract and elaborate on the idea that it is not neutral and free from such things as racism and white supremacy and can act as a tool of oppression. Methods: We critique social contract theory through examination of classical and contemporary contract theorists. More specifically, our analysis draws from the work of Charles W. Mills, a philosopher of race and liberalism, as well as the theoretical and praxis framework of intersectionality. Results: Social contract theory supports hierarchies and inequities that may be used to sustain unfair and unjust differences in oral health between social groups. When dentistry's social contract becomes a tool of oppression, its practice does not promote health equity but reinforces damaging social norms. Conclusion: Dentistry must embrace an anti‐oppression framing of equity and elevate the principle of justice to one of liberation and not just fairness. In doing so, the profession can better understand itself, act more equitably and empower practitioners to advocate for justice in health and healthcare in its fullest sense. Anti‐oppressive justice supports health not as merely an obligation but as a human duty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the oral health status of the United States (U.S.) population has improved over the years, racial/ethnic inequities are pervasive with Black Americans carrying a greater burden of oral diseases in most measured outcomes. Access to dental care is a major structural and societal determinant of oral health inequities rooted in structural racism. From post‐Civil War‐era to present day, this essay presents a series of examples of racist policies that have shaped access to dental insurance for Black Americans both directly and indirectly. Additionally, this essay explains the unique challenges of Medicare and Medicaid highlighting the specific disparities that these public insurance programs face, and proposes policy recommendations aimed to reduce racial/ethnic inequities in dental coverage and access to advance the nation's oral health with comprehensive dental benefits in public insurance programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we seek to understand feminization of the dentist workforce moving beyond previous research that has looked at gender in isolation. We contend that little consideration has been given to how gender interacts with other important social identities such as race/ethnicity to influence the opportunities and barriers that female dentists encounter during their dental career. We argue that the scholarly debate about the feminization of the dentistry has not acknowledged the intersectionality of women's lives. Intersectionality describes how multiple social identities (such as race/ethnicity, gender, and class) overlap and interact to inform outcomes, creating disadvantages and/or privileges. Our thesis is that the increasing feminization of the dentist workforce is complicated and paradoxical, creating both opportunities for women and gender imbalances and blockages within the profession. To support our thesis, we critically reviewed the literature on feminization and analysed UK and US workforce data. While the female dentist workforce in both the UK and the US has increased significantly over the past decade, the growth in the number of female dentists was not equal across all racial/ethnic groups. The largest increase in the number of female dentists was among White and Asian women. Viewing the feminization of the dentist workforce through an intersectionality lens exposes the multiple and complex experiences of women, as well as the power dynamics in dentistry. Feminization in dentistry demonstrates the importance of presence, privilege, and power. Based on our assessment of the dentist workforce, dentistry may be less inclusive, despite being perceived as more diverse. Further research should explore how power and privilege may operate in dentistry. Dentistry should embrace intersectionality to provide an inclusive evaluation of equity in the workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Major sociohistorical processes have profound effects on oral health, with impacts experienced through structural oppression manifested in policies and practices across the lifespan. Structural oppression drives oral health inequities and impacts population‐level oral health. In this global perspective paper, we challenge old assumptions about oral health inequities, address misleading conceptualizations in their description and operation and reframe oral health through the lens of intersecting systems of oppression. Furthermore, we emphasize the need for oral health researchers to explore causal pathways through which oppression harms oral health and engage in social science concepts to understand the root causes of oral health inequities fully. Finally, we call on policymakers, dental scholars and decision makers to consider health equity in all policies and to take a systems‐oriented approach to effectively address oral health inequities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]