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An essay on sterilization
An essay on sterilization
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Birth control has been in effect for a long time. People think that the pill or condom would hold the top spot for number one, but no. What many people do not know is that sterilization is the number one form of birth control. Today sterilization is a form of contraception for more than 223 million couples (Scott and Glasier, 2003). Even though sterilization is the number one procedure it has not always been executed through the consensus of its partakers.
Sterilization is the medical act of making a person unable to reproduce and is meant to be permanent. Both men and women can be sterilized, the process for men is called a vasectomy and a woman’s procedure is called tubal ligation. .
Beginning History in the U.S.
There is a long history of voluntary and involuntary sterilizations. It may not be known, but the United States is a big offender of forced sterilizations, dating all the way back to the 1900’s. In 1907, the U.S. applied a policy to sterilize “unwilling” and “unwitting” people forcibly (Krase, 1996). In 1924, Virginia adopted a law to reduce the tax burden, because the public facilities for the “insane” and the “feebleminded” had grown (Lombardo). The first person to be picked to be sterilized was a seventeen year old girl named Carrie Buck. Her mother was already being held in an asylum, the Virginia Colony for the Epileptic and the Feebleminded (Lombardo). The people at the Virginia Colony asylum told Carrie that since she shared the same traits as her mother, the feeble-mindedness and sexual promiscuity traits, she would be sterilized so she could not pass on the traits again; at this time Carrie already had one daughter. She was seen as a perfect candidate for Virginia’s new movement. This case went to trial an...
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...the Mississippi appendectomy. Also in the North teaching hospitals would do hysterectomies on poor black women so their medical residents could practice (Roberts, 2000).
Conclusion
It is very sad to see that sterilization went on for so long. Many people, including myself, are in the dark of the horrible things that have gone on in the history of America and the world. I hope that we now have and will not succumb to this kind of thing ever again. The era of forced sterilization is an evil time and should have never started. It seems that we left sterilization in the past, but is it really? There has been talk that California forcibly sterilized their women inmates in their state prison up until 2010; even though it was outlawed in 1979. Let’s hope that America and the world have moved passed that, but there is always a chance that we could revert back to old ways.
...ng on Justice Douglas view, it is not right to use genetics and issues of hereditary in legal decisions (Reilly, 1991). Such natural aspects should not violate the individual’s right of procreation and fourteen amendments. Everybody is therefore entitled to basic civic rights. Eugenics movement disappeared after the atrocities by the Germany regime. Although Holmes there was overturning of Homes decision eventually, Ms. Buck and many feebleminded American citizens were victims of State and Supreme Court immorality. Reviewing of the focus period, neither society nor individual got benefits of Compulsory sterilization statutes. The change of attitudes towards mental handicapped people over time is interesting. From late 1950s in the United States, civil and women rights movement, contribute to acts governing the handicapped rights including their rights to reproduce.
In the book Medical Apartheid, written by Harriet A Washington, the author focuses on the hidden, dark history of American experimentations done on African Americans during slavery times to more present days. Washington’s main purpose of the book is to educate readers about the abusive, deep history of experimentations done on African Americans and to explain why African Americans mistrust American medicine so much and are unwilling to participate in any research or screenings. Although Washington represents many specific cases of abusive experimental evidence—in order to reveal why African Americans mistrust American medicine today—her main arguments were that these experiments were done without consent, that physicians and scientists were
Vesicovaginal fistula is a tear from the bladder or anus to the vagina that causes urine or feces to leak and can arise from physical complications from the birth of a child. In 1849, the American surgeon James Marion Sims was credited with being the first doctor to successfully repair this condition surgically (Ojanuga 1993). His methods included operations on 14 African American female slaves without the benefit of anesthesia. Many women underwent multiple operations, as many as 30 separate times (Macleod 1999). However, Sims is hailed as a heroic and noble contributor to the medical world and women’s health, yet his work only recently been questioned regarding his controversial operations on slaves. The issues surrounding Sims’ works concern the morality and ethics of Sims’ operations and whether the “ends justified the means” when looking at the findings vs. the methods. Undoubtedly, Sims contributed volumes of knowledge and expertise to gynecology by pioneering new technologies and techniques that were surgically successful (Zacharin 2008). After observing postcolonial society through Sims’ lasting discoveries, his critics and supporters, and his own autobiography, I believe that the production of Sims’ surgical contributions came at far too high of a cost. His barbarous actions helped to perpetuate the degradation of women, and African American female slaves in particular, and also promote slavery. This topic is important because the medical world has a responsibility to acknowledge the roots and founders of its discipline and cannot turn a blind eye to these appalling acts, as so many textbooks and medical journals have. Since its birth, the politics of medicine has perpetuated a racial hegemony and the combination of Sims ...
Mitchell, R., & Jr, Jones, W. (1994). Public policy and the black hospital from slavery to
The fact that the only physician to support contraceptives was a woman speaks volumes about the disconnect between the male and female perspective on the issue. It begs the question: Can a man objectively weigh in on this issue? Since inarguably both the physical sacrifice and emotional burden of carrying to term and caring for an unwanted child lay solely on the
When legally introduced to society in 1960, the Pill stirred up a long period of controversy. The availability of the Pill had great impact on women’s health, social life, laws, religion, family, relationships, morality and sexuality. Initially conceived to be highly effective and safe, the Pill left many women with side effects – few which led to several fatalities. Before the Pill was created, many women postponed sex due to the social norm and fear of becoming pregnant before marriage. Families grew large and it was typical for a woman to have multiple children caused by the lack of birth control. Due to regulations, such as the Comstock laws, many people supported the prohibition of the Pill and other family planning practices. However, many women believed in the right to control their own body when it came to procreation. Despite the controversies, the Pill left lasting impacts, such as by opening society to the sexual revolution and...
According to some accounts, the eugenics movement died out in the 1930s. However, the forty two percent of Native American women who were sterilized under questionable circumstances by 1982, stand as testament that eugenics was alive and kicking during the seventies (Define 1997). Sparked by concern about overpopulation in the 1960s, eugenics was legally sanctioned under the Nixon administration (Johansen 1998). This sanctioning was given life in a campaign to sterilize the impoverished. For instance, between 1969 and 1974, the budget for family planning increased from $51 million to more than $250 million (Johansen 1998). This money helped to sterilize between 192,000 and 548,000 women each year between 1970 and 1977 compared to an average of 63,000 a year between 1907 and 1964, a period that included the pinnacle of the eugenics movement (Johansen 1998).
The United States has also used sterilization on individuals , in the case mentioned above this also was used on the native Americans Without their consent , and also on the mentally incapable. In all cases of forced sterilization in regards of the right or wrong of it is wrong , anything that is forced is considered non consensual. just like any other item that could be done to a person without the individual 's consent it is against the law on almost all cases. As mentioned before the United States has acted in many not necessarily constitutional ways in regards to reproductive rights , another occurrence in which the United States violated the reproductive rights of many is during the time frame which the United States forces native americans onto reservations and when the native american women went to give birth at the birth clinic the medical staff would assist in the birth then after the child had been born they would unconsensually sterilized the Native American women this activity allowed the united states government to control the amount of future reproductions that could take place in given native american
For many years, infertile couples have had difficulty facing the reality that they can not have children. According to Nidus Information Services Incorporated, 6.2 million women in the United States are infertile. This problem leads to many options. A few options have been used for a long period of time: the couple could adopt a child or keep trying to have a child themselves. For those couples that want to have their own children, there are new options arising. In vetro fertilization is an option that gives couples the chance to have a doctor combine the male's sperm and the woman's eggs in a petri dish and implant them into the woman's womb after the artificial conception. This may result in multiple pregnancies - more than five in some cases. This does not only occur in implantation, however. Many times the patient's doctor will ask her to consider selective reduction: aborting a few fetuses to save the ones she can. In a case of multiple pregnancy, selective reduction should be considered an option.
The topic of birth control in public schools has attracted much support from the American public from surveyed statistics. For example, a 2006 Associated Press-Ipsos survey discovered that 67% of Americans support the provision of contraceptives to students. This study also determined that, “About as many - 62 percent - said they believe providing birth control reduces the number of teenage pregnancies” (Associated Press). Such a huge percentage suggests that Americans are very concerned about the increasing cases of teen pregnancies and would eagerly adopt any method that has a possibility of reducing this problem. In addition, the subjects in the poll indicated that they believe that contraception usage in schools has the potential of reducing teenage pregnancies. Many American people support the view points, that schools should offer contraceptives to students in schools. This can really help minimize...
The eugenics movement started in the early 1900s and was adopted by doctors and the general public during the 1920s. The movement aimed to create a better society through the monitoring of genetic traits through selective heredity. Over time, eugenics took on two different views. Supporters of positive eugenics believed in promoting childbearing by a class who was “genetically superior.” On the contrary, proponents of negative eugenics tried to monitor society’s flaws through the sterilization of the “inferior.”
Years ago I remember stories of girls with unwanted pregnancies going to a rear 'back-alley” apartment located in the Voyageur Bus Station in my small town for abortions. I am sure some of the tales were fabricated on hearsay, some might have had some merit, but the word coat hanger kept popping up in conversations. Once in awhile I would walk by that building and wonder what really went on in there and feeling every sad for girls that had no choice. In 1963, my mother's friend told us the only patients that got dialysis were septic abortion 'survivors'.
Who should be responsible for stopping the 120 million sperm that are released during a male orgasm from fertilizing a female’s egg? The context of that question has been a societal debate in terms of the consequences of unplanned pregnancy and whether it is a female, male or both sexes responsibility to practice “safe sex”. Introducing the birth control pill for women in the 1960s created a huge controversy between sexual conservatives and the women who would benefit from the pill, but the responsibility still remained in the hands of women. However, as medicine has advanced and the possibility of a male birth control pill has amounted, many wonder if the same issues would arise if a male birth control pill did in fact become available. In order to understand the effects on society of both individual female and male responsibilities it is essential that the women birth control pill is discussed, the male pill and lastly, what the stigmas and potential effects of both birth control pills mean.
Is sterilization for those on Medicaid, correct? Or is it unethical? This is a topic that for many years has been controversial. History of sterilization for women without their consent goes way back when U.S. women of color were victims of forced sterilization. Some women were sterilized during C-sections and they were never told. Other women were threatened with termination of welfare benefits or denial of medical care if they didn’t consent to the procedure (Garcia, 2013). In the late 1970s, in an effort to protect women’s reproductive rights, federal legislation preventing sterilization of women without their consent was passed. One of the most important features of this legislation is that it applies
The only way to ensure that sterilization has occurred is to use the biological monitoring methods. This is because these are the only tests done which show whether or not actual microbial life has been killed. Biological methods are the only ones which are recommended by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the AAMI (Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation), the AMA (American Medical Association), OSHA, and OSAP (Office Safety and Asepsis Procedures Foundation)