Latin Eugenics in Comparative Perspective

Marius Turda and Aaron Gillette , Latin Eugenics in Comparative Perspective (New York and London : Bloomsbury Academic , 2016), pp. x + 360, $39.95, pb.

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In Latin Eugenics in Comparative Perspective, Marius Turda and Aaron Gillette trace the existence of 'Latin' eugenics as a distinct intellectual, social and cultural trend from the late nineteenth century to the 1940s. In what is essentially an intellectual history of the Latin eugenics movement, Turda and Gillette examine the papers and publications of the movement's founders, the way that their ideas were disseminated via conferences, and the formation of organisations dedicated to advancing their ideals. The authors trace this movement through an impressive array of countries spanning both sides of the Atlantic, including Western European countries like France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium and Italy, Eastern European counties like Romania, and Latin America, with a focus on Argentina, Mexico, Brazil and Cuba. Their source base also comes from archives in four different countries. The result is a good overview of the formation and evolution of the Latin eugenics movement during the late nineteenth century and twentieth centuries. As the only comprehensive work on Latin eugenics, Latin Eugenics in Comparative Perspective is a valuable resource for understanding both individual national eugenic programmes and the international linkages between them. This approach demonstrates the similarities and differences in national eugenic approaches, the ways in which they influenced each other, and how they changed in response to new economic and political conditions in Europe and Latin America.

This book argues that Latin eugenics was a coherent ideology and set of practices identifiable...