The eugenics movement originally started in the late 1870s because of the idea that inferior classes, criminals, poverty, feeble-minds, and disease were hereditary and reproducing would create an unfit population in the United States. Forced sterilizations and the introduction of birth control began with the demand to wipe out populations that were constructed as inferior. The early history of the birth control pill was a form of eugenics, and was not only oppressive towards women of color but to women across the United Sates. In the second decade of the twentieth century, the U.S. birth control movement became an important topic among Americans. It was at this time that Margaret Sanger, the eventual founder of Planned Parenthood, became involved in the radical movement for voluntary motherhood and the distribution of contraceptives (Hartmann). As a nurse she assisted poor women in giving birth, and saw the effect of having too many children on the welfare of these women. She also saw the suffering, pain, and death of many women who obtained unsafe, backdoor abortions to escape having more children (Shaw, Lee). Forbidden by the Comstock Laws, which “made it a crime to sell or distribute materials that could be used for contraception or abortion” (“Comstock Law of 1873”); Sanger could not share information on how to prevent pregnancy. In her article, My Fight For Birth Control, Sanger tells a story of a woman wanting to know how to prevent pregnancy. The doctor’s solution was “I’ll tell you the only sure thing to do. Tell Jake to sleep on the roof!” (My Fight For Birth Control). Months later the same woman died from abortion. From that point on Margaret became adamant about how women should have the knowledge of contraception, an... ... middle of paper ... ...irth control pill when they were targeted to decrease the growth population because of their socioeconomic class and race. African American women were oppressed because of their forced sterilization history and from African American men who wanted them to rapidly reproduce. Planned Parenthoods were strategically placed in highly populated areas of African Americans, and subsequently their growth rate decreased dramatically. Women of all races, socioeconomic classes, and education levels experienced the oppression of the social stigma of being promiscuous once she received a prescription for the birth control pill. Finally, women also felt oppressed by feeling like she could never turn down sex just because she was on the pill. The birth control pill’s early history proves that it was not only oppressive towards minorities, but also to women across the United States.
They thought that rich women kept contraception a secret. Wardell included that women in poverty had to work longer hours to support their numerous children. Wardell’s article involved a survey that stated that the number of the child deaths grew exponentially in those times, because there was little to no contraception available for women living in poverty. Therefore, less fortunate women were more vocal about their need for birth control, when Sanger went to trail, ninety-seven per cent of the public favored Sanger’s views – a great support for Wardell’s article’s argument
The American Eugenics Movement was led by Charles Davenport and was a social agenda to breed out undesirable traits with an aim of racial purification. Eugenics was a used to breed out the worst and weakest to improve the genetic composition of the human race, and advocated for selective breeding to achieve this. The science of eugenics rested on simple mendelian genetics, which was a mistake because they were assuming complex behaviors could be reduced to simple mendelian genes. After Nazi Germany adopted the ideas behind the American eugenics movement to promote the Aryan race, the eugenics movement was completely discredited.
...still a vital part of world today. Planned Parenthood is not segregated to color or affluence and has definitely changed the world as we know it today. Margaret Sanger though a determined selfish women did not get everything the way she wanted it to be. She hung up fliers in immigrant neighborhoods just so the poor or colored would go to the clinic. She wanted these people to go to the birth control clinics so they couldn’t reproduce. Margaret believed that if you couldn’t support the family you already have you shouldn’t have more children and she was a strong believer that the inferior race should not be able to reproduce. All of Mrs. Sanger’s actions said more then what her voice said. Margaret Sanger was a powerful strong woman who was celebrated as an advocate of women’s rights; however her motives were for all the wrong reasons.
"A free race cannot be born" and no woman can call herself free who does not own and control her body. No woman can call herself free until she can choose consciously whether she will or will not be a mother"(Sanger A 35). Margaret Sanger (1870-1966)said this in one of her many controversial papers. The name of Margaret Sanger and the issue of birth control have virtually become synonymous. Birth control and the work of Sanger have done a great deal to change the role of woman in society, relationships between men and woman, and the family. The development and spread of knowledge of birth control gave women sexual freedom for the first time, gave them an individual identity in society and a chance to work without fearing they were contributing to the moral decline of society by leaving children at home. If birth control and Sanger did so much good to change the role of women in society why was birth control so controversial?
Margaret Sanger was the founder of The American League of Birth Control which later became Planned Parenthood and her argument in those times was that it was not fair for women who were from a lower class could not have access to Birth Control.
During the nineteenth century, white women feminist were demanding access to birth control, they wanted to be in control of their reproduction. In this birth control movement, it lacked the participation of women of colored. There was assumption on why women of color didn’t participate: women of color were fighting against racism or weren’t aware of sexism. In reality, women of colored couldn’t associate themselves to the cause because they exhibit sterilization abuse. In the birth control movement, white women were fighting for abortion right, they were fighting for them to have the decision to either keep or abort a child. While, women of color were forced into sterilization without consent. Women of color didn’t support the “Pro-Choice”
Additionally, compulsory sterilization efforts could be implemented. become glorified in eugenics programs. Davis asserts that the birth control proponents within the feminist movement from the very beginning determined that it was the moral. obligation of black and other minority women restrict the size of their inferrior families.
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...
Birth control pills gave women the right to be in charge of their own conception or lack thereof.
Imagine today in America’s hyper-sexualized society, not being provided with any knowledge about contraception or sexual education. Before Margaret Sanger’s activism, most women were in this position of oblivion about their own bodies. In “Morality of Birth Control”, Sanger argues effectively for the legalization and acceptance of both birth control and sexual education using ethos, pathos, and logos to strengthen her argument. Sanger organizes her argument by first presenting a series of questions that were sent out to “the most eminent men and women in the world.” These questions pertained to the opinions of these men and women on the topic of how birth control and awareness could potentially affect their society.
During the early 1900s, American nurse Margaret Sanger led the birth-control movement in the United States. She and others opened clinics to provide women with information and devices. Although frequently jailed, she and her followers were instrumental in getting laws changed. In subsequent years, laws against birth control gradually weakened, and more effective methods were developed.
Margaret Sanger was, at large, a birth control activist, but this speech was more about the questioning of birth control corrupting morality in women. People must remember, in the day and age where Sanger presented this speech, November 1921, women were considered very far from equal and much closer to servants or maids. In her speech, I saw that ethos was present in the sense that she gave herself credibility. Through Sanger’s detailed words and actions, and her statements including the presence of scientists and, or, professionals, the masses of listening people could infer that she was very well informed and solid in her statements. Though she presented herself as agreeable, Sanger was firm in her beliefs. In addition, Sanger says, “We desire to stop at its source the disease, poverty and feeble-mindedness and insanity which exist today, for these lower the standards of civilization and make for race deterioration. We know that the masses of people are growing wiser and are using their own minds to decide their individual conduct” (Sanger, par.15). To me, Sanger made herself appeal to the audience by using the word ‘we.’ In the practice of ethos, this focused on the author more than...
Since its inception in 1883, eugenics has long since been the subject of controversy and a forum for discussion on ethics and morality. Positive eugenics, defined as, "encouraging reproduction by persons presumed to have inheritable desirable traits," is considered a benevolent form of eugenics, but can be used for sinister purposes. Negative eugenics, officially defined as, "discouraging reproduction by persons having genetic defects or presumed to have inheritable undesirable traits," is perhaps the more well-known variety of eugenics, with notable examples such as the Holocaust and forced sterilization. In addition, negative connotation makes it difficult for either type of eugenics to be supported and instead raises questions about its relevancy. Both positive and negative eugenics can be used to justify racism, prejudice, and other forms of intolerance and violence; therefore, neither variety of eugenics should be promoted.
A common practice of reinforcing eugenics is the discouragement of reproduction between people, who have genetic defects or presumed to have inheritable undesirable traits; in addition to, encouraging reproduction by people believed to have inheritable traits of optimal quality (Dictionary.com). The use of compulsory sterilization falls in line with the mindset of eugenics’ distaste and avoidance of reproduction occurring between two individuals with perceived genetic defects. For example, a man and women that each have a mental disorder and physical deficiency that runs in their families. These individuals would be deemed unworthy of conceiving a child. This belief lead to the mass sterilization in America, Germany, and Puerto Rico. There were 60,000 compulsory sterilizations in America from 1934 to the 1970's (Kaelber, 2009), 200,000 in Puerto Rico between 1936 and 1960, and 300,000 to 450,000 in Germany in 1945
Eugenics is the science of improving the human population by controlled breeding to increase the occurrence of desirable heritable characteristics. Eugenics was originally developed by Francis Galton as a method to improve the human race, and fell into perversion after being used by the Nazis. Eugenics and genetic manipulation holds a huge threat to society. Eugenics started as early as 1883, was used cruelly throughout the war, and is still used for modern medicine today.