Eugenics Flashcards
What is eugenics?
The study of selective breeding in order to achieve traits considered more desirable.
Who developed eugenics, and why?
Francis Galton create eugenics as a way to prove his genius and claimed that desirable characteristics were heritable and could be passed down to offspring.
When did eugenics start to gain popularity?
During the early 1900s, when America was going through tough times (WW1, Great Depression, immigration), citizens looked to place blame on those who were seen as less desirable (POC, handicapped, poor). This caused feelings of superiority to spread across Americans.
What controversial event made headlines in 1915? Why was it so controversial?
Dr. Harry J. Haiselden refused to conduct life-saving surgery on Anna Bollinger’s newborn child due to his severe birth defects. The child became know as the Bollinger Baby and made headlines due to the controversy of letting a child die because of its defects, which raised questions of treatments of those with birth defects.
What was the ideology of feeblemindedness?
Americans began to teach that those who were considered feeble-minded (idiots, imbeciles, morons) needed to be avoided and not reproduced with in order to avoid producing more feeble-minded offspring.
What measures did some Americans take in order to push the reproduction of more desirable offspring?
US lawmakers attempted to put into law eugenic sterilization, which would force women deemed feeble-minded or containing less desirable traits to become sterilized.
Who was Carrie Buck and what happened to her in 1927?
Carrie Buck was a victim of rape who was blamed for her assault. She was involuntarily institutionalized and compulsory sterilized after being labeled as feeble-minded in the case Buck v. Bell.
Why did the eugenics movement “stop”?
After WW2, Americans didn’t want to be compared to the horrendous Nazi party and began to cease forced sterilization.
How did “post-eugenics” look like? What happened in 1978?
Rather than forcing women to be sterilized, the US promoted voluntary sterilization while continuing to teach about reproducing with those containing more desirable characteristics. In 1978, a large group of Latina women sued the LA county hospital for sterilizing them without their informed consent or coercion while they were giving birth (Madrigal v. Quilligan).
