« Ind. Courts - Columbus lawyer faces charges of dealing drugs | Main | Ind. Courts - Indiana Judicial Center's second half review of the status of bills of interest to the Judiciary »
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Ind. Law - "100 years later, Indiana expresses regret for sterilizations"
I attended the presentation yesterday in the Supreme Court Courtroom - "'Three Generations of Imbeciles are Enough': Reflections on 100 Years of Eugenics in Indiana." The entire room was packed, I got one of the last seats, and am very glad I went.
Today was the all-day Symposium titled "Indiana Eugenics: History and Legacy, 1907-2007" at the State Library. Ken Kusmer of the AP attended and writes about it here that begins:
Indiana atoned Thursday for its role in pioneering the state-authorized sterilization of "imbeciles," paupers, criminals and others it deemed undesirable, expressing regret for passing the first such law 100 years ago.Then-Gov. J. Frank Hanly in 1907 signed the state law widely regarded as the first in the world to permit sterilization in a misguided effort to improve the quality of the human race. Before ending the practice in 1974, Indiana sterilized about 2,500 people; nationally, 65,000 people in 30 states were given vasectomies, tubal ligations and other operations in a eugenics movement that eventually reached horrific proportions in Nazi Germany.
"Indiana's role in the history of eugenics is one that we do need to acknowledge, we do need to learn from. It is one that we do regret but we should not forget," Health Commissioner Dr. Judith Monroe said during a symposium at the Indiana State Library.
For more, start with this ILB entry from Tuesday and its links. See also this site on Indiana Eugenics.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on April 12, 2007 07:18 PM
Posted to Indiana Law