Eugenics and Forced Sterilization
Clarence Gamble and James Hanes were founding members of the Human Betterment League of North Carolina in 1947. The League was tied to forced sterilization programs that saw both men and women, mostly poor, of low IQ, and predominantly minority extraction, undergo surgical sterilization without consent, with the goal being to reduce the state's welfare burden and improve the gene pool. The program ended in 1977; the state government apologized publicly in 2002. Governor Bev Perdue is advocating for financial restitution to be made to 7,600 victims.
Read more about this topic: Clarence Gamble
Famous quotes containing the word forced:
“The good enough parent, in addition to being convinced that whatever his child does, he does it because at that moment he is convinced this is the best he can do, will also ask himself: “What in the world would make me act as my child acts at this moment? And if I felt forced to act this way, what would make me feel better about it?””
—Bruno Bettelheim (20th century)