Read
the informational pieces below and discuss the issue of reproductive
control including ethical considerations of mandatory sterilization
policies.
Due June 12, 2012
Uzbek women allege forced sterilization - Salon (07/19/2010)
Social origins of eugenics - Paul Lombardo, UVA
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12 comments:
I have to come out and say that I feel forced sterilization is unethical, though I do not disagree with it. I myself was raped as a child. I was lucky the encounter did not lead to a pregnancy, but in the case of Carrie she was not so lucky. I honestly think if someone is convicted of a sexual crime they should be forcibly sterilized the first time. Why wait for more victims before you do something about it? I recently read about a man who is a serial father. He is in his twenties and has thirty-three children. He makes minimum wage and pays child support to children he never ever sees. The payments are around one dollar and sixty cents. This is just ridiculous. This man does not need to have any more children. All of them are on welfare, which means I pay for them to eat, be clothed, go to school, and so on.
Eugenics on the other hand I can’t say I agree with. Sterilizing someone because his or her mother had a drinking problem or didn’t have a good job is just ridiculous. I know several people who have never had a drink in their life because one or their parents was an alcoholic. Life is a journey; we all regret certain parts of our past at some point. Some people have to live in their car for a few months before getting back on their feet, or have to go on welfare temporarily. That doesn’t make them unfit to ever be parents. In the case of a whole country forcibly sterilizing people to meet a quota, just, wow. How ridiculous is that? Even China, with its massive population doesn’t force sterilization on any of its citizens. Shame on you Uzbekistan.
I agree with jennifer i think forced sterilization is totally untethical. I feel no one other than yourself should be able to make the decision if you shouldnt be able to have more kids or not.it would be ethical if they had a medical reason behind it or her permission but not just because she has lots of kids already.
i feel in eugenics case its totally unethical because just because of someone own personal habits you should nevr be able to sterilize the child because of what the mom does just because he came from her doesnt mean he is going to follow in her footsteps.
Wow, when i read these articles I was dumbfounded. I cannot believe that forcing sterilization on people could ever be legal, but i was wrong. I do not feel this practice is ethical at all. In the case of the Uzbec women, where this was the sole form of birth control for them sounds crazy to me. How are these women not being educated on protection and given the option for pills or pregnancy prevention devices that are temporary. Like the ladies before me said, many people end up down on their luck for a while, this is not a permanent case and why are we allowed to punish people for their status in society. That is like saying some people are better than others. Not cool.
As far as the case with Carrie Buck, did the court ever stop to think that this young girl had been raped and that maybe she was suffering from some emotional trauma from that? and not that she was just "crazy like her mother". Also when they checked her child, I wonder had they not already had their minds made up beforehand and just diagnosed the baby on preconceived notions? Even still, just because someone has a person in their family with emotional or mental instability, does not mean they are destined to have it. Some of the diagnoses are not permanent, some are due to traumatic events that occurred in the childs life and they may not have been taught the proper coping mechanisms to deal with these hardships and end up paying for it later in life. I feel for these people. Even with epileptics, epileptics are not mentally instable, they have a disease where the synapse in their brains misfire and they end up having dibilitating seizures because of it. That is physical illness that can be treated and maintained with medication. With all the money these people spend on sterilizing these patients, why don't they spend the money on better research for epilepsy medication and to offer counseling for those who have been traumatized and diagnosed with mental illness instead? I think too often all over the world, money is spent on the wrong things. Even here in america, we pay sports athletes and actors millions and millions of dollars when there are people truly suffering out there and people who cannot find work. It's ridiculous. But that's a whole other story...
I believe that forced sterilization is unethical. At some point you have to stop all this social engineering. In so many ways we have utilized the law to make God like decisions that seem appropriate and beneficial to society. But as humans we are not all knowing and should not make these God like decisions. We are not a perfect society and who are we to make these decisions. I agree that the money spent on this issue maybe better utilized on research and education. We are a society of laws but we should not use are laws to socially engineer because we will never be a perfect society.
The issue of reproductive control strikes a personal cord with me. I know someone who had a child with a woman who is extremely mentally ill. She has a disease that convinces her it is her mission in life to have children, and then slowly poison them to death. She has over 10 children that have all been taken away by CPS agencies all over the country. She was almost successful at poisoning her first 4 children to death, but once the government got involved the children were taken to safety. She is a very sick woman, and hides from the government, preying on men who she considers weak and easily manipulated into having their children. The hardest part is that she has no idea what she is doing, and is also very intelligent. Watching someone I know go through a painful process of finding all this out and trying to pick up the pieces has caused me to feel that forced sterilization is completely necessary in some case.
In the articles we read, I was blown away by the misuse of laws only 100 or fewer years ago! Saying that someone who has a treatable or curable mental illness cannot have children is a dangerous spot. Also, who is deciding if these people are mentally ill? Also, I am surprised at how easily and freely they added in the policies that being promiscuous and poor is a great reason to be sterilized. Misuse of policies is one thing, but using a forced sterilization policy to lessen poor people, promiscuity, and certain races is completely unacceptable.
When including ethical considerations of mandatory sterilization policies, I feel that it is possible to mix the two. In the articles we read, it seems to me that forced sterilization has only been used for controlling population. Going to those extremes is unethical most certainly. But, I also strongly believe that there are some situations where people should not be able to reproduce. The children in my friend’s situation were in danger from the moment they were conceived. Forced sterilization can prevent child abuse and child deaths in some cases. Although I believe that forced sterilization should be treated with the same seriousness and delicacy as the death penalty. It is not a light subject, but I believe that ethics and forced sterilization laws can go together.
Forced and coerced sterilizations are grave violations of human rights and medical ethics and can be described as acts of torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment. Forcefully ending a woman’s reproductive capacity may lead to extreme social isolation, family discord or abandonment, fear of medical professionals, and lifelong grief.
I believe that forced sterilization is not ethical at all. No one should have a say on whether I have a child or not. God forbid that there be something wrong with the baby. That does NOT mean that I would love a child any less if the child was "less than perfect" in the eyes of my Government. If I choose that I am not ready to have a child yet, and I choose to use a form of birth control, I should have that right to do so.
If I decide in the future that I don't want to have children, I can choose to not have a child. No one should have the right to make that decision for me. No one should have their rights taken from them.
I believe it is completely wrong that some women were sterilized without their knowledge. The Government feels that they have the right to tell someone that they can only have 1 child, that their child needs to have nothing wrong with them. I don't believe anyone should have control over my body but me...and only me.
Oh my goodness people are unbelievable sometimes I don't even know where to begin. Well first off I find that both stories are unethical, I feel sorry for those Uzbek woman, doctors, and nurses. To be forced into sterilization is inhumane. With all the different forms of birth control today, I don't see why they do not offer other options to the women in there country. People should share equal rights whether they are poor or a doctor nobody is above the other.
Eugenic Law is this a joke? Since when did the constitution only apply to a certain type of person? There shouldn't even be a question on whether or not this ethical. I think in this case it goes to show how uneducated America was. I think it shows a history of poorly thought out judicial system. No one has the right to make a decision on a person's right to procreate. It's sad to say that we don't live in a world where people are "model citizens", but doesn't mean that we all don't share the same rights. For criminals, I believe it is still within there right to be able to bear children no matter how many times they have broken the law. It does not mean their children will follow suit.Same goes for prostitution, personally in there line of work I feel they should not be having children. Unless that baby is whats going to help them turn their life around. As far as the mentally ill, for me it would depend on how severe the disease is. If they are to a point where they are totally dependent, then I would have to say I don't feel that they should be having children, but nor do I feel comfortable with the thought of forcing sterilization upon them. I do feel that if the decision is made by a medical professional or medical power of attorney, given the odds and risk to sterilize a persons with a mental disease then it would be ethical. But in that instance only if that person does not fully understand the meaning of the procedure and can not make the decision for themselves.
I don't think the government have the right to say a person can have a child or not, it is not their decision. Only God can judge if you should bear a child or not. I had no idea our history involved such cruelty upon the human race just to limit the population. As said earlier we are all not perfect. There is no guarantee what our offsprings will be, but we will still love them. I have always thought our nation to be intelligent, environmental friendly and people friendly. I guess there was a loop whole that everyone missed to examine. This act of forced sterilization is beyond control of the human race. I guess this all leads to money. They don't want more people to be born that are unworthy and will cost them money. So, they decided to end someone's decision to have kids, based on theirs. I just feel sorry for all the people that went through this against the will. I pray for their family and also for the people who have been blind to judge others and committed just hatred crime against the human race.
After reading the two links on forced sterilization I feel like it is 90% unethical and 10%ethical. The numbers really aren't accurate but how I feel but its hard to describe under what conditions they are ethical. In the case of Carrie I dont believe that was ethical because none of the reasons that they had for sterilizing her were legitimate and I believe in some situations the government shouldnt be able to make the decision because people are capable of bending laws and false accusing people in matters that cant be turned around. I believe that it is ethical if there was a man or woman that had child after child after child with no means or care to provide for the children or people who are prostitutes or have hiv/ aids that are transmittable to the child and persons who are heavy on drugs that would damage the child if to become pregnant. So mostly any situation that would be potentially hazardous to the child I agree to a forced method of birth control but i would choose something temporary on things that can be overcome but permanent for hiv/aids. Some what i feel its bad to take away someones decision but i do think sometimes it is appropriate ... hence the reasons for other laws and jails and prisons ... if we said everyone should be able to just do what they want and no one should be able to control what they should or shouldnt do then lets just let out all the rapist ,drug dealers , murderers, child molesters, and people in insane asylums and allow them to run the streets and make bad choices to harm others and themselves and impose consequences for their families and citizens to bare all on account for their free will.I would like to file Exempt on taxes that go for other peoples mistakes or lack of responsible parties to control having children due to their right of free will.
aI have to agree with Turiya forced sterilization is ethical to an extent. It is right for some people who think having babies and hurting them or putting them in some kind of danger is wrong. I ahve seen men out there who go from women to women getting them pregnant only for the female and kids to live off of welfare. It is unethical because yes its violating our human rights in the stories the government needs to research other ways in controling population growth such as other forms of birth control.
Sterilization is definitely not the answer. There is a problem with some of the people that are having children and those children become a victim of circumstance. Unfortunately there is no way to give a "cookie cutter" solution. The first steps would be based on how the person with the problems was raised. Some of the issues that society faces are problems that are learned, not passed down through genes. In some rare cases, there are tendencies to behave a certain way, but how you deal with issues is where a solution would best fit. In the cases where a forced sterilization becomes an option- we need to ask the question- is this really going to fix anything or just prolong the problem. Education is the best weapon against plain ignorance and before people begin to play God, take a step back.
Sterilization is only unethical when it violates the rights of a selected individual. Sterilization is also an unethical practice when people are pressured to undergo the procedure. In Uzbek, citizens were required to undergo this procedure in order to prevent the population growth and the spread of STD's. The viewed patients are not allowed to use alternate forms of contraceptives. By default, patients are forced to use this procedure. What makes it even worse is that health care professionals that cared for these patients were also forced by the government to perform these procedures. The government is supposed to protect all individuals regardless of their social standing. The government that originally began protecting the people, developed into a corrupt government that pushes their ideals on its "protected citizens". The same situation was present in the United States when doctors began sterilizing handicapped individuals to prevent the spread of "disease".
I understand where both countries are coming from, but how can you take a person's God given ability to give life. What if a down-syndrome couple wanted to have their own children? What if two HIV infected individuals wanted to experience childbirth? Under the law, the Government would sterilize both couples taking from them their human rights and their possible children. This is what makes the actions of a government so unethical. They are invading the individuality that should exist in homes and imposing their own "ideal socially acceptable family".
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