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    102 views19 pages

    We Cannot Make A Silk Purse Out of A Sows Ear

    Uploaded by

    api-297525160

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
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    INDIANA MAGAZINE OF HISTORY nas faced by Jewish migrants living onthe south se of tndanapois Inthe carly 1900s. As Mons research makes cleat, concern ato what onsite » proper Amerian” emanated not en rom nave bor, Protestant eins, but arse jst s pressing within the ethnic popul tion tll Mosss work makes clear the allacy—-now a. Iaended to stop the propagation of "cone fined criminal, dots, mbes and rps” hel obliged mental and penal instiatons o appoint tre surgeons in addin fo existing Ine personnel, ro, along with the sperintendent, were empen te trie inmates for whom “prcteson i inadvisable and there [Sh prebaiity of improvement of the mental condition ** ven hough thes law wa a watered for the press of eugenics sn dina and he United Sates, as not formulated de ay. stad, ‘it cepresented the legalistic eulnatin fa east two decades of steady developaent of oe abou criminality, degeneracy hyper esta and the primacy of rei n determining personaly ad fai as Staring inthe ate nineeeath cent, lucia Indiana inching any and Congregstonallst miniser Oscar McCulloch, began to express lari ver wat hey perecived tobe a rapidly grown class of {egencrte and deesed pacer. To understand this phenomenon they turned to eugenics, which dail complex soci, economic, and env ronmental sues fo simplistic explnatons of genes inhertance. AS uy told the Inganapois iter lub, “all socal problems, which we haveasidoounly redo solve by educaton cae cure and ee, are [cs becoming secogotzed tobe bilogial problems" Through prolesionl and vic networks, the eugenics crus in Indiana began fo coalesce nthe car 190s, Boosted by his reputation EBay ete hn trig a UNS Ave rps ht adnan te Agta man ‘State tncr dsc ec aorta ono (fy Cuane nner (tent of Ne Dame saree) "So di hrm i, Ti Ha al fr Ary se Hay (tcp Fv INDIANA MAGAZINE OF HISTORY 2 a nathnally respected heal leader, Murty stod athe freon of this hargeoning movement, regulary giving tls wth tes such as ‘Making & Beer Race” and "Morons" to lea physicians and reform: cs! Hs was a decidedly pesmi perspective snc ts impessible to encourage the Att reproduce at arate fast enough to offet the tinceasing propagation ofthe unl, engniissaeded to put a stp 10 “een rou the worst." Huy ook peat pid in his Sate agares sive ellos agains race deteroraion and often expounded on the ‘rts ofthe sterizaion lw aswell asthe eugene marsage ban. He ‘deemed stration a “higher Fygiene, trough which we can hope to Detter the race." Voicing an atttade widespread among American cngenlelsts.Horty contended that socal amelioration and itrcton ‘ould never cre degenerates who had no power o fare of ming, 10 ‘witha tmpuation declaring “the hrf only can reach them” One tthe easons eugenics gpned an early fool in Ilana was because ies infuentil spokesman Harty saw le difference between public health and engenie. From his perspective, both volved bread-based sanitary measures guided by the test scientific discoveries and ‘vances: both were andes for humanitarian purposes: and both ftrve to end the slfering of unfortunate and to maximize the overall health of the body politc® Hur praeed bie signature quarantine (190) hoot sation (1911) and pre fod and dg (190) acts ‘he sane rent asthe maeige and seriizaton ws" Se Ses eee ‘Shapes Be Ar "Cg Ser aa Ser oe Ee op cee amet i ‘Soames altaya ore is st ar frit Pin eel Ae tpt ain Amr ey aaa i Tr Hath fr Chan Pip a it Te gr cam eda As Huey was spreading te eugeni gospel throughout indiana, cigar piney capereeening le eer ere py for woubledpeuoner. At de cute Sharp we antacid to vse thy Ca procdare he heed 0 refine aan alters to csrtion that fe eteved ould effectively treat onaism and sexwal deviancy” With this premise n mind, Sharp began to vasetoize mats atthe indian Reiormatery in 1899, performing approximately 225 such operons efor he sterilisation law was pase is 1907 Gradually Sharp moved lavay from seing vasectomy primarily asa therapeuce measure and egon to regard it as an eugente otervention capable of improving the Tuma ace Under the hereiaran spelland Hey aware hat eros ‘might interpret the unwarranted vasectomy of inmate as amsavory mt best, Sharp ured dhe legislate to passa compulsory sieriztion ae He beieved this at simlaneotsly woold save the state thousands of Alas y allowing forthe release of treated inmates, hereby halting the {eansmision of "mental a wel as physical defecs” ro Het offspring This 1909 pamphlet stom. Sharp enthusiastically repre that he ad steric total of 456 men rom 1999 1 1909 and advocated the “Jnana Plan” fcites beyond the sate reformat Despite tong suppor i high places, Governor Thomas Marshal, svho suceeded Hany in 1909, was apprehensive about the state and Sharps vsecomies. Dac in part to a andl flees like Millar hat condemned the forceful tacts employed atthe Indiana Reformatory. snd in pat to parton one-upmanshp, Marshall ordered a mortem ‘on sterliesons in sate eins peng 1909.° Ths tra of events la nk crim ply mah pt he Lin Hof al Cad Spinone YS Toy ie ee ny wm pens harp ped od be Se ited ot pce pes eel a a ‘gina maroc Ba f eto arn a ‘Sith owas cemetary th nn eos ben 19 a ie Sey ar cee penta a ORAS frase utd not disuse Sharp or Harty, who tla oleae ha Kutsall was “a gos mam in every tapect, but he Ras not yet been Trough around wo our advanced deas"™ uct to ogy’ chagtn, neither Marshal nr his imme se ‘cwors were brought around, Ar mare and more ofthe striations SSG in American states cme under legal seruiny nthe 1910s and ‘Bove rendered unconsitutonal or various reasons, Indiana governors Teame way of countenancing an at hat contained vial no pote thom for patients or inmates.” Given this nebulous state of alas, (Ganeeno James Goodrich decided in 1919 thatthe me ad come fave “the constctionaity ofthe la tested” n order o determine its Tegal and applicability” He appfnted the Jflersonvle cy attorney tonlend Waren Wallace Sith, convicted of rape and Incest, against 2 Seniization ender approved by the Indiana Reformtorys board of trustees" Altre deison for Smith i dhe Clark Cireuit Court, Dr Charles E Williams, chief physician of te Indiana Reformatory preted tothe Indiana Supreme Court which nto upheld the lower Teun decision 1021, Additionally, he high court anid thatthe Srenlization lw violated both the state constitution and the US. ‘Constitution, specially the laters Fouteemh Amendment by dep: ing sth of “eer anal propeety without due proces of law” and ‘fea protection of the avs” This decision aso Stated "while vasex= tomy ts physially less severe ham casa, intrest smoch the eurser and more vulgar ands eqalyercl and inhumas."* Tan toni wi the tate hat had paso the word fist stcritnion law scarcely implemented i for almost wo decades. Indiana 1907 strilaton law aero because of its inchoate wording, Sharps improdence, andthe reluctance of governors cognizant that hm yw ag i sy 8198, Leek NH ano Port or ip Bly he ural ati Ay of Sty et et sta a in ansogovs strates were Beng struck down around the country. Cour rare demonseated that sterizatin ats that could be centred as vasa than cogent or preventive intent and outcome ie tdi not ps enter ag consi Jrpeudence To rey it nduana atte was Oo more than a leglave posse Free biguens seibzationcompaiga aed well underway. Insofar rer epamided no recourse or reed inmates aed was put mo pratt serpin ome state rio this law smacked oo mach of punish- ered too Ite of pile health, an oversight appavetly lost on Fla, When anew cohort of lglators ratified a revamped etn 1927, They tad eared what pitas and problematic terminology 0 avoid (pent, Indiana steilaton Matus served afer ese for Te deelopmen of eterno ls impovtans, fet of Hoosier eigen. BEWARE THE KENTUCKY HILL-FOLK “Who were the ever-mltpiying degenerates vat so preoccupied Indians saps? As scholars of dsbity and education ave shown, Tre wae people who tay would e considered mentally retarded or Teclopmentaly disabled Others were mentally illindviduals diag Sone sth condition dat payebiaits considered organic ov heredle Tay inorigin™ Many more, however, were poor and disenfranchised ‘Hoosiers marginalized bythe process of indusrazatin, urbana: {don and modernization tat ranafrmed the tat from 18801 1940 rom the late nineteen o the early twentieth century, Indiana ‘eaderwent far-reaching changes on men) Levels Fis, the population ove drat jumping fom ist undet 2 milion in 1860 ene) 3 millon by 1920" Second the state’ rural counties experienced consid- able population decline startng in 1910. Whereas 65.7 percent of “looses ive in rural aes 1900, by 1930 this percentage ha all ‘Dial ris ued ety, Ca, 199 Om nd Re Ce er tar mae tc spe tect res th Cee td Sem te Pe Sok, 10 Tt nn pn cry 8 equ 80, a ean noSDaRSAO oo lc ol aco Pchare ‘antral el ey ley a 9 "ado ao enn Chang, Pag, or ati 38 INDIANA "MAGAZINE“OP "HISTORY 'o-4452 Thisshift was mae evident a higher population concent ‘ons nthe principalities of For Wayne, Evan, South Bend, nd ‘most impor. the capa Idinapols, whic claimed over 10 pte ent ofthe entre sate population by 1920.” Thin, diana’ econ nalnstay of agiealure wae undergoing major changes se mechaneed power, crop diversity. growing livestock putin, ad value-added ‘commerialzaton gradually supplanted the fone arming sara ith subsistence, horse, and manpower inputs As inthe domain of Fea, agriculture was altered by the sing authority of seni meh ‘as and stundards, whch farmers often led trough extension pro. grams and traveling agricultural agents Fourth, am outspreading "wansportaton network of rays, tterusbas, ad roads was econ ring the landscape as was the arival of ranning water, sng, eee lic, and telephones. Helly, this was also the time of 4 yreat awakening in education,” when s modem publi school system was ‘stbllshed and attendance forall children aged eight to fourteen wat ‘de mandatory. For example, from 1900 to 1920 the number af igh ‘school students climbed ttm 33,246 10 78.849, giving Indiana the fourthchighsst proportion of enzlles in the nation™ While these ‘changes brought greater wealth snd occupational opportntcs wo tany Hoosier, they ako unleashed societal dilorations that exacerbated las divisions and the caltral aps between the htrate and iterate, ‘Schooled and unscooe Both ndianasinvugura charter of 1816 and the state’ revised tue o 1851 had guaranteed liberal provisions forthe protection of he wunrale and dienfanchised~ The loubding constrion expe iy pledged pena code baeed on the pineipes of formation atl a ‘ol vndetive juice” andthe eration ofa system of ear, eduction aad tweatment forthe poot, aged and inilem" The 51 consiteton "ina gh on nd Changs 38, Enon nan St iret cae Fl gt lenny dn was om “ena 4 Cryo Pg “expand histo inca the def Mind, insane, and juve offenders “Tis basic commitment to welfare and benevolence aid the parsers forthe formation i 1869 ofthe Board of State Charities (BSC), which “as carged with overseeing a growing constellation of facies forthe Insane clans, const, eeleminded and robe chien > “The SC ws he ainchild of Oscar Melle who encapsulate athisfears of degenerates overronning inca a The be of soa family study tha equated the prolersting depraved clan of the SIshmacites” with the Saculna sera parasite” Such an ioloyeal tnderpiing primed the BSC to ely chilly on heediaan principles fo interpret the heightened visit of those Hoses left behind by modernization In particular Ames W. Bue, the BSC secretary from 1988 01925, tured to eugene heres to grasp and vse the state's cclerating ate of "pauper, degeneracy and cri. Bue was ‘Progressive reformer whose eaning a zoologist prepared him to apply sclentiic esearch to social wellte” In 1915, wth Governor Samuel Ralsons blessing, he crested the Commitee on Meatal Defetves (CMD, recruiting “ight prominent cizens" to esablish the ‘committee’ mission and goals.” In consti wil atonal goes in ‘ental bypene they seed ona rigorous ant objective study oe fal dfetvesincluding the eplepi,eeble-minded nd insane” and fm assessment of what is being done for dhm here ad elsewhere” For eugenie expense, Ble contacted the Eugenics Reson Office Siesta tee epee, Poemaeeciere tei Goan ier, RES a ret Bets a ecm Nae igen alee eee a ono INDIANA MAGAZINE OF HISTORY Which after some negotiation, “loaned” hms Arthur Estabrook (the thor ofan updated version ofthe cssle Te uke) and provided ew ral graduates of ts summer traning school Before long, CMD researchers se off oloeate menial defectives in institutions, schools, andthe general population, many of whem ha been Wei by lca plyscians, wardens, lawyers, teachers, and civic leaders. ‘The CMDS labors from 1916 to 1922 resid in thee reports and the ealelation that 2.1 percent of Hoosiers wete mental electives” ‘While te first two repots compared mental defeciveness inten cone tes, the tid devoted much of ts space to mental sorveys conducted in schools, omphanages, and the Marion County courte" Each report choc aren common among American eugenics that of the three ‘ypes of delecives—eplepic sane, and feeblemindd-—wvthott a doube the laser posed the gravest thst. Unlike the more eal eco rized and imerned eplpties and insane, the febleminded were set tered “everywhere, ln town and ity and counry” and priced "more euperam, degeneracy and eine than anyother one foc." Of pate= ‘lar concern were morons, the highest grade offeebleminded. While ‘heirleser counterparts dite nd bees, were sufcen retatded ‘0 warrant permanent nsikuuonaliation, morons represented trier ctullnge because the cold fanction in society "the morons ate more eal ke heres of ws—they may even appear normal" Accord alse dln natok en tr e389 eer ni Caan ed apy CM SBC Cac The es tet: tac een te ‘ees eh ee DE Sr enh ta atten pe ‘ut a eH St ref Sed ri of ae ‘RO ain St tf es ef Me fee Awe Nel een nn go en nel Det aed rer St a naa eal ain depen ‘inne Cae ta sa ‘eros Bo Comp id Rete aes Re Me ‘Sethe pon the gh Buc or ewan Ba pera pene aco “Rosman mono amy Sp emg feteaeaieere [EUGENICS IN THE HEARTLAND ” INDIANA MAGAZINE OF HISTORY the CMD, morons were an insidious menace because ther ably 0 pass coupled wih a inbor lak of inhibin and eco enabled Tero propmgte their defective hesediya tes pt 2.4 tes those of mama peopl “The CMD was one of many agencies around the country that tered the detection of mentally isbled children inthe school s)stem fd insted special eduction programs. Nonetheless ttrospec the CMDs survey corps conta some ofthe most disturbing examples of Hoosier euenls. The CMD dispatched fed workers othe eleven Counties pie in the official reports and toa least a dozen more Many of the researchers were professional women who fancied them selves sles siete missionaries and arrived a thet destinations frmed with the eugenie tools of the day: cameras, pedigree chars Terediary nomenclature, and reliable fru or croniling Carly lineages in an abrged yet melodramatic form.” The hundreds of am studs gathered by the CMD offer a window onto the devastating socal ‘Mest and human costs of ruta povery, jo sere, and haphazard ducstonal aces, Stang together, the stues canal be read as tnetaarmatve of the ancien about contamination, disorder, and ou ‘control bodies that so engrossed eugenics and of how they

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