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Sterilization of America

By 1883, Sir Francis Galton of Great Britain (Charles Darwin’s cousin) had coined the term eugenics — literally meaning "well-born" — to apply to his groundbreaking theories on genetics and social engineering. Galton believed his "moral philosophy" could improve the human species through encouraging society’s best and brightest to have more children.

Experts fanned out to cover the lecture and exhibit circuits with the slogan: "Some Americans are born to be a burden on the rest."

In 1907, Indiana became the first state to pass a law permitting involuntary sterilizations on eugenic grounds; at least 30 states would follow suit. Many of them simply adopted a model "eugenical sterilization law," crafted by the ERO’s Harry Laughlin, which called for compulsory sterilizations of the "socially inadequate." By the mid-1920s, more than 3,000 people had been sterilized against their wills. These included the homeless, orphans, epileptics, the blind and deaf. Also sterilized were those who scored poorly on IQ tests, who were diagnosed as being "feebleminded."