It was 1998. I was a young medical intern working in a small hospital in an Indian village. I had looked forward to being posted there as it was meant to be a ‘rest period’ after many sleepless months of working in surgery and hospital […]
Tag Archives: eugenics
Marie Stopes: history erases ugly facts to create a mythical feminist hero
For some, the name Marie Stopes speaks of one of the biggest abortion providers in the world. For others, it speaks of a person, a feminist icon and pioneer for birth control and family planning. Both are true, but few people know about Marie Stopes […]
This baby is still you, just the ‘best of you’ – the quest for better babies
In one of the early scenes of the sci-fi film Gattaca, a couple decide they want to ensure their second child has the ‘best’ start in life. So they visit an IVF clinic to select the genetic profile of their baby. When the couple express […]
Peter Singer backs abortion for curbing population growth
Peter Singer is an Australian moral philosopher and currently Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University. He is former editor of the Bioethics journal and one of the most influential thinkers in bioethics today. Singer espouses utilitarianism, a system of ethics that seeks to minimize suffering […]
Eugenics close to becoming a ‘human right’ in Europe
A pending case (Kruzmane vs. Latvia) before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) could have profound consequences for people with disabilities. The ECHR is preparing to issue a ruling on the fundamental right to the prenatal screening and elimination of children with diseases or […]