Eugenics: The Well-Born Science · Episode 6 of 9 · 41 min
The Lie That Sterilized 60,000 Americans: Buck v. Bell
In 1927 the Supreme Court ruled eight to one that Virginia could sterilize Carrie Buck against her will. She was a young woman who had been raped and committed to an institution, and her case was a staged test case. Justice Holmes wrote of three generations of imbeciles, and more than 60,000 Americans were sterilized in over 30 states under a precedent never overturned.
Who's who
- Carrie Buck+1 more episodeVirginia woman sterilized after the staged test case bearing her name
- Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.+3 more episodesJustice who wrote the 8-1 majority opinion
- Harry LaughlinAuthor of the model law Virginia's act was based on
- Albert PriddyColony superintendent who sought a test case
- Aubrey StrodeLawyer who drafted the Virginia act and argued to uphold it
- Irving WhiteheadCarrie's lawyer, whose conflict of interest sank her defense
- Paul Lombardo+1 more episodeHistorian who exposed the manufactured evidence
Where it happens
- Virginia Colony for Epileptics and Feeble-Minded, VirginiaInstitution where Carrie Buck was committed and sterilized
- Supreme Court of the United States, Washington, D.C.Decided Buck v. Bell in 1927
Timeline
- 1924Virginia passes its sterilization act; Carrie Buck committed
- May 2, 1927Supreme Court upholds the law in Buck v. Bell
- October 19, 1927Carrie Buck sterilized, the first under the Virginia act
- 1942Skinner v. Oklahoma limits sterilization of criminals but leaves Buck standing
- 1979Virginia repeals its sterilization law
- 2002Virginia issues an apology
Still debated
Exact sterilization totals vary by state and some records are incomplete. Historians debate whether Holmes was a convinced eugenicist or a jurist deferring to legislatures, and legal scholars differ on the precedent's current force since it was never formally overturned.
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