Abstract
Dying persons are invisible and are difficult to identify, set apart, and serve. Dying as a phenomenon is under siege. In this chapter I consider the plight of both dying persons and dying itself in the United States, the importance of dying persons to society, and several factors (elaborated technology, physician aid in dying, and organ transplantation) that threaten our ability to protect dying and dying persons. We examine possible remedies, considering (and eliminating) advance care planning and hospice. Bruce Jennings's assertion of civic palliative care along with a practical reinterpretation of his “standings” in solidarity with dying can provide useful tools.