As its title states, this book examines the history of medically "justified" and pseudo-science backed abuses of black Americans from colonial to modern times.
Harriet Washington traces American racism from a medical standpoint from the early days, when science was more curious than anything else, to the days of slavery, when religion and science went hand in hand to justify by divine sanction, on the one hand, and by scientific reason, on the other, that black slaves were inferior to their white masters - morally, physically and mentally; after the end of slavery, when that brand of religious racism held less sway, Darwinism was pulled into the mix; and, now, when words such as "inferior" are never used in a racial context, expect in a discussion of historical viewpoints, or by the most ardent racists, other, more insidious terms pop up - for the same purposes of exploitation and abuse. While the evolution of racism in the US is not the main topic of this book, it is inevitably linked; this book is an interesting look at how the two, racism and racist abuse of minorities, have worked together throughout American history. This book is easy to read language-wise, although the content is very difficult at times.
Some of the highlights of Washington's work:
- She examines how the slave-holders wielded faulty - and, sometimes, simultaneously contradictory - scientific theories to justify the harshest abuses of black slaves, as well as the institution of slavery itself. African-Americans were both extremely susceptible to disease and incapable of living on their own (thusly in need of their masters' gracious benevolence), yet at the same immune to diseases white people could contract in the fields, doing the same labor.
- She touches on the pseudo-scientific/medical "justifications" for the sexual exploitation of female slaves. As black people were (according to the prevailing racial ideas of the day) morally as well as physically and intellectually inferior, it was the wanton female slave, and not the virtuous white master, who was to blame when rape occurred. This went hand in hand with the wholly accepted exploitation of female slaves as breeders of new slaves (Washington quotes Thomas Jefferson as declaring, "I consider a slave woman who breeds once every two years as profitable as the best worker on the farm.")
- She follows medical abuses of blacks as they morphed from the era of slavery (when the health of blacks was regarded only insomuch as it brought profit to a slave owner, and blacks often fell victim to the ownership of doctors who preyed upon their legal status of "property" to conduct all manner of horrendous experiments) to freedom (where black health was still considered of no account, and blacks still found themselves the unwitting victims of abuse - including body snatching, experimentation, etc.).
- She examines the era of eugenics, when abuse morphed into a desire to exterminate - all for the purpose of creating a genetically perfect group of people, of course.
- She includes a lengthy examination of some of the more recent experimental abuses, ranging from studies performed with out consent, without the hint of therapeutic benefit, etc.
- She also includes an examination of abusive "research" conducted on prison populations, which, proportional to the "outside" population, were considerably skewed to include far more black victims than representative of the overall population.
Washington covers far more than these points, and each of these points is examined at length, in detail. Her sources are many, and her writing - even when discussing the most horrendous abuses, the most offensive racism, etc. - is easy to follow.
There are times, I think, that Washington assumes a racial motive for what is not necessarily racially motivated - such as HIV/AIDS experimental pediatric treatments that target primarily black orphans/foster kids. Is this really a racially motivated abuse, or are these kids just the most vulnerable and easiest to get at for the researchers? In other words, are the researchers targeting them because they are black, or are they targeting them because they are powerless and friendless, and therefore easy subjects for research? I'd be inclined to believe the latter. Not that that makes it right, by any stretch of the imagination; I'm just not convinced that skin color is a deciding (or motivating) factor. Unscrupulous people will target vulnerable populations, period. If Washington could show that the same researchers bypassed similar white populations to prey on black ones, I could more easily believe that race was a deciding factor. Of course, this discussion is made less straightforward by the abandonment of racist terminology...a hundred - even fifty - years ago, there would be no need to wonder; racially motivated experimentation, as Washington shows, was openly labeled as such by the researchers involved. Now, words are chosen more carefully...so racist intent, if it exists, is masked behind non-racial language. Regardless, whether the intent of such studies is racist or not, the outcome is that, by design or no, blacks still face exploitative studies and disproportionate risks.
All in all, this is a very well researched, thought-provoking book. This is one more piece, often overlooked, in the discussion of American racism, and one that we cannot afford to overlook. We've all read the religious justifications for murder, slavery, and all sorts of other evils, that mankind has thought up through the ages. We know, too, from the abuses of the Nazis, that the scientific and medical justifications, when science and medicine abandon their true purposes, can be just as terrible. But it was not the Nazis, Mengele, etc., who exemplified this for us; American doctors, researchers and scientists have a terrible history of their own. It is intellectually dishonest, and morally dangerous, to ignore the wrongs committed by those on "our shores"; it may be comforting to think of forced sterilization programs as a Nazi-Germany thing, and so distance ourselves from that savagery. But forced sterilization, the "one drop" rule, Pocahontas exception, etc., etc., etc. were all American things; there is no distance between our culture and a culture that could produce such wrongs. Ours did, a relatively short time ago; pretending it did not happen will not prevent it from happening again. We need to see more books like this one - books that confront America's racist past, rather than ignoring it or pretending it vanished when black kids could go to the same schools as white kids, or African-Americans could ride anywhere they wanted in a bus. Washington's honest look at the brutal reality of racism in medicine is exactly the sort of discussion we need to be having - about all aspects of racism.
5/5 stars
Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime
Try Prime
and start saving today with fast, free delivery
Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.
Frequently bought together
$11.49
Get it as soon as Saturday, May 18
In Stock
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Choose items to buy together.
Similar items that may deliver to you quickly
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
Popular Highlights in this book
Infant mortality of African Americans is twice that of whites, and black babies born in more racially segregated cities have higher rates of mortality. The life expectancy of African Americans is as much as six years less than that of whites.Highlighted by 897 Kindle readers- American university research centers have historically been located in inner-city areas, and accordingly, a disproportionate number of these abuses have involved experiments with African Americans.Highlighted by 849 Kindle readers
- “[It was] cheaper to use Niggers than cats because they were everywhere and cheap experimental animals,” neurosurgeon Harry Bailey, M.D., reminisced in a 1960s speech he delivered while at Tulane Medical School.Highlighted by 776 Kindle readers
From the Publisher
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
Videos
Page 1 of 1Start OverPage 1 of 1
Videos for this product
4:27
Click to play video
A Video Review of Medical Apartheid
Maurice Miles Martinez
About the author
Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Reviews with images
Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2011
Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2024
Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2008
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2024
Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2024
Top reviews from other countries
Valencia
Demonic Scientist And Doctors
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 13, 2021