Forced Sterilization of People with Disabilities in North America

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Forced Sterilization of People with Disabilities in British Columbia**

Forced Sterilization: What is it?

Definition

Sterilization [1] is defined as "any process that eliminates, removes, kills, or deactivates all forms of life and other biological agents (such as fungi, bacteria, viruses, spore forms, prions, unicellular eukaryotic organisms such as Plasmodium, etc.) present in a specified region, such as a surface, a volume of fluid, medication, or in a compound such as biological culture media." The word forced [2] defines something that is "imposed on by coercion or physical power." So forced sterilization would be the imposition of a life eliminating process on an individual without their consent. Defined, "forced sterilization is the process of permanently ending someone's ability to reproduce without his or her consent."[3] Forced sterilization is an involuntary process in which people have their right to reproduce taken from them, sometimes even without their knowledge. In the 1900s, a fad called Eugenics was a major factor leading to forced sterilization. [4]

Eugenics

Eugenics is "the science of improving the human species by selectively mating people with specific desirable hereditary traits." [5] Essentially, this method challenges natural selection and creates an environment in which powerful humans select which humans are able to reproduce, based on their genetic makeup with the goal of only breeding humans with the most ideal genes. It is guided by the thought of creating a genetically perfect gene pool, and in the 1900s there were attempts to create this euphoria by eliminating the continuation of "imperfect" genes. The most commonly know example of eugenics is the Holocaust.[6] Another example of how people tried to create a "perfect" gene pool was by forcibly sterilizing people who had various disabilities, so that they could not reproduce and pass their genes on to another generation. This method has often been considered morally wrong and a violation of human rights.

History

In 1933 the Sexual Sterilization Act was implemented in BC, allowing a Board of Eugenics to have the right to make decisions on people's ability to reproduce. [7] Surgical sterilization procedures would be permitted on people who were considered "feeble-minded" or "mental defectives," so that their genes could not be passed on to another generation.[8] Intelligence tests were being run within schools, hospitals and mental institutions across the province to determine who was eligible for sterilization consideration.[8] In addition to people with disabilities, prisoners, immigrants and Indigenous people were largely targeted for sterilization. [7] The Act was appealed in 1973.[7] Since the fad of Eugenics, only one woman has been able to successfully sue the government of Canada for the sterilization forced upon her [9] and there is one famously known example of the Supreme Court of Canada denying the involuntary sterilization of a woman with a disability. [10]

Intersectionality, Rights and Forced Sterilization

What Makes a Person?

A person is comprised of many different parts. Linguistic prescriptions such as people-first language help promote the idea that though people may have a disability or diagnosis, it is most important that they are recognized as humans first. [11] This approach aims to decrease marginalization and dehumanizing people based on one component of their life. Intersectionality is a framework that recognizes different social categorizations, and appreciates that many can exist and create different forms of marginalization for a single person. It proves that there are many components making up an individual. For example, while people may look at a person with down syndrome as "disabled," intersectionality would further look at the gender, race, culture, disability, etc, to depict a more accurate image. Described using people-first language, this individual would be described as a person with down syndrome, recognizing that they are not defined by their disability, but rather they are a person who has one.

Eugenics & Reproductive Rights

The movement into legalization of eugenics was considered to be a progressive movement for its time. However when reflected on, eugenics and involuntary sterilization are an abomination of human rights, and the Sexual Sterilization Act created in BC was a breach of basic human reproductive rights. People were having their ability to reproduce taken from them without their consent, or even their knowledge. It was also a discriminatory act towards people with disabilities, dehumanizing them to a point of trying to rid the rest of the world from their genes. This further enhanced the negative connotation surrounding disabilities, and both supported and encouraged negative stereotyping. The basis for sterilization was unjust, stemming from instances such as low IQ test scores, mental assessments and even just "hunches" from other people. [9]

People targeted within the Sexual Sterilization Act were referred to as "inmates," which is a summarizing statement of what they were - prisoners to a harsh world where they had no choices, respect or equality. [7] Many of the people becoming sterilized had no idea of what was happening, and did not discover the truth until later in life. One example is Leilani Muir, a 14 year old girl who had sterilization surgery when being told she was having her appendix removed. [9] She was forcibly sterilized due to a low IQ test score, and when she discovered what had happened to her later in life, she struggled immensely with depression throughout her journey to adopt or find alternate ways to start a family. [9]

The End?

Though we'd like to believe that eugenics and forced sterilization are things of the past, there are still examples of their prevalence and impact in the world today. Involuntary sterilization interferes with the birth rights and choices of women, similar to how anti-abortion laws are still being enforced across the globe.

In addition to this, many Indigenous women have recently been coming forward about the involuntary sterilization that they, or women they knew, underwent by eugenically-minded doctors across BC, as recent as the late 1900s. [1] The Sexual Sterilization Law in BC was not appealed until 1973, just under 50 years ago. [12]

It would appear that this issue, like many, is not as far in the past as we'd like to believe.

References

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sterilization_(microbiology)

[2] https://www.google.com/search?q=forced&oq=forced&aqs=chrome..69i57j69i60j69i59j0l3.784j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

[3] http://faculty.webster.edu/woolflm/forcedsterilization.html

[5] https://www.history.com/topics/germany/eugenics

[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Holocaust

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Sterilization".
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Forced".
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Forced Sterilization".
  4. ↑ "Forced Sterilization History".
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Eugenics".
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Holocaust".
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "Sterilization Law BC".
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Eugenics BC".
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 "Leilani Muir".
  10. ↑ "Eve Ruling".
  11. ↑ "People First Language".
  12. ↑ "Sterilization in Canada".
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