The prospect of extraterrestrial contact has long been a staple of science fiction, but recent developments suggest that the reality may not be far off. With reports of unidentified aerial phenomena and potential governmental cover-ups, 2023 has become a year ripe with speculation about alien contact. As members of an Indigenous studies working group, experts have provided key insights into the ethical and historical dimensions of this unprecedented possibility. Drawing from their participation in a workshop with the Berkeley SETI Research Center, they offered a perspective grounded in the lessons of past cultural contacts and colonial history.
The working group has highlighted the need for diverse perspectives in discussing the ethics of searching for alien life. It emphasizes that this search should incorporate a broadened understanding of what constitutes “intelligence” and “life.” Indeed, the group sees first contact not as a singular event but as a long process that may have already begun. They assert that “contact might best be thought of as a series of events that starts with planning, rather than a singular event.”
The current players in this unfolding scenario are the military, corporate entities, and scientific communities—groups with significant influence but varying objectives. According to the Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act of 2015, these corporations could be the first to discover extraterrestrial societies, potentially prioritizing profit over broader ethical concerns. Meanwhile, most extraterrestrial communications and evidence-gathering are led by the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI), which, until recently, has been a largely STEM-centric endeavor.
Notably, the chair emeritus of SETI Research, Jill Tarter, has posited that listening for technosignatures is a benign activity, suggesting that “what harm could come from simply listening?” However, the Indigenous studies working group cautions against such assumptions. They draw parallels to historical figures like Christopher Columbus, whose interactions with indigenous peoples were skewed by European perceptions of superiority. This history is replete with brutal violence, enslavement, and genocide.
The group’s concerns extend beyond ethics to practicalities, raising the question of preparedness for a range of contact scenarios. These include discovering artifacts, dealing with linguistic differences, encountering microbial organisms, and preventing biological contamination. Such scenarios could lead to military actions, corporate mining endeavors, and geopolitical reorganization, much as Captain James Cook’s scientific voyage initiated wide-scale colonization and the dispossession of Indigenous peoples.
In essence, the act of listening and preparing for contact has its own ethical implications. To listen indiscriminately may amount to a form of surveillance or eavesdropping, and beginning relations with aliens by listening in without permission poses a risk of being perceived as disrespectful or invasive. “If humans are initially perceived as disrespectful or careless, ET contact could more likely lead to their colonization of us,” the group states.
The working group advocates for a clear distinction between SETI’s scientific goals and the interests of corporations, the military, and governments. This separation is essential to avoid the ethical pitfalls and political entanglements that have historically accompanied exploration and contact.
Relevant articles:
– First contact with aliens could end in colonization and … The Conversation, Jul 19, 2023
– First contact with aliens could end in colonization and genocide if we don’t learn from history The Conversation, Jul 19, 2023
– First contact with aliens could end in colonization and genocide if we don’t learn from history • Kansas Reflector Kansas Reflector, Aug 4, 2023
– First contact with aliens could end in colonization and genocide if we don’t learn from history Space.com, Aug 14, 2023