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The Eugenic Movement

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During the eugenic movement there were internal concerns about criminals, insane, feeble mindedness, alcoholics, paupers, derelicts, delinquents, orphans, prostitutes and those unable to support themselves. These traits were considered to be hereditary defects that cannot be eliminated by environmental procedures. Many studies supported and illustrated the use of sterilisation as negative eugenics such as the Juke family published in 1875 and the Kallikak family in 1912 where one or more members of the family were considered to be unfit. In 1907 Indiana was the first state to pass involuntary- sterilisation based on the eugenic ideologies of the unfit. By 1931, 30 states had passed this law. As the concept of the “unfit” was subjective and …show more content…
Many academics argued the differences between the fit and unfit. The Right to Death was a booked published in 1895, which promoted medical killing and the shift of control from the individual to the state. This inspired Professor Hoche’s 1920 publication “The sanctioning of the destruction of life unworthy to be live”, which included the medically or incurably ill. The killing of such people was considered to be mercy killings, they were unfit to live and did not benefit the nation. In 1939 Committee for scientific treatment of severe genetically determined illness established a euthanasia program. In this program Medical professionals registered children born with congenital defects to determine whether they were to be euthanised. Children sentenced to death would be transported to concentration camps and exterminated (Garver, 1991, pp. 1109-1118). Initially the program was targeted at children under the age of three with congenital defects. However, by 1941, the target group was extended to unhealthy seventeen year olds, and by 1943, included inferior raced children as well as healthy Jewish, homosexuals and gypsies. German extermination institutions or concentration camps are historically known as primary sites for the genocide of predominantly European Jews. However, the masses of people that were killed contributed to all cases of other. Whether that be gender, health, race or sexuality. The medicalisation of this eugenics policy was severely detrimental to the German population and Germany as a

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