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From 1919 to 1952, approximately 20 000 individuals were sterilized in California's state institutions on the basis of eugenic laws that sought to control the reproductive capacity of people labeled unfit and defective.
Using data from more than 19 000 sterilization recommendations processed by state institutions over this 33-year period, we provide the most accurate estimate of living sterilization survivors. As of 2016, we estimate that as many as 831 individuals, withanaverage age of 87.9 years, are alive.
We suggest that California emulate North Carolina and Virginia, states that maintained similar sterilization programs and recently have approved monetary compensation for victims. We discuss the societal obligation for redress of this historical injustice and recommend that California seriously consider reparations and full accountability. (Am JPublic Health. 2017;107:50-54. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2016.303489)
In the first half of the 20th century, approximately 20 000 individuals were sterilized in California's state homes and hospitals on the basis of eugenic laws designed to control the reproduction of people labeled mentally defective. Using data from more than 19 000 sterilization recommendations processed by California institutions from 1919 to 1952, we provide the most statistically rigorous estimate to date ofthe likely living survivors of California's sterilization program.
Given the relevance of public health policies and institutions to the compulsory sterilization of thousands of individuals deemed "unfit" to reproduce, we suggest that public health advocates committed to social and reproductive justice can play a leading role in addressing this historical injustice and its contemporary legacies. We call for societal accountability toward the dwindling number of living survivors and propose that California follow the lead of North Carolina and Virginia in providing redress to those affected by state-mandated reproductive constraints.
BACKGROUND
In 1926, Marsha (all names are pseudonyms) was admitted to the Sonoma State Home in California and recommended for sterilization because of her IQ score of 56, which placed her in the category of "low moron [sic]" (Figure 1). Given this diagnosis and because she was "sly, profane, [and] obstinate," the medical superintendent determined that Marsha was "dangerous to public health" and, therefore, should be sterilized. Marsha was but one of approximately 20 000 people affected by a law passed in 1909 that authorized such reproductive surgery on patients committed to state homes or...