Eugenics Perspectives

Definition

The word eugenics means to be "well born" and the scientific portion of it was to understand the principles of genetics in order to improve human hereditary (Cogdell). Francis Galton, who first used eugenics, wanted to improve humanity by giving future generation more suitable strains of blood and races; thus a better chance of prevailing over less suitable ones.

American Roots

In 1906 a group was created by an extension of the American Breeders Association that gave the United States its first organization in eugenics. In 1910 the socio-political portion of eugenics created a stir among the public. It had moral issues of diminishing the unfit while at the same time trying to increase the birthrate of the fit. (Cogdell)

Due to the level of scientific analysis of things like heredity and the debate between traits being passed on through birth or being adopted through the environment, Eugenics did not catch on as quickly as the movement wanted it to. For example, a disease which is communicable through birth such as Syphilis, was sometimes thought to be a genetic disorder. A carryover from the mother and father. (McCann) This type of congenital disease would thus be grouped together with something that was actually a genetic disorder. This type of error only goes to disprove some of the foundations in the the logic behind eugenics. To add to this another scientific error committed was the thought that genes were transmitted without any sort of mutuation from the parents to the child. When these theories began to be discredited by the scientific community, Eugenics received less support from the scientific community.

Mendelian

The rules of inheritance: ex. "feeblemindedness was transmitted as regularly and as surely as color of hair or eyes." (McCann) From this simple rule, as well as others, Eugenicists would trace the histories of many "degenerate" families and also families of "good stock" and would, time and time again, find the same results. A family of degenerates would produce more of them, and vice versa. Here is where economics would start to play a role. Once the "degenerate" family could be traced back to a single "degenerate" mother, economists/eugenicists would add up the social cost and burden to the community of the large family tree. From this the sterilization of just one "unfit" will save the fit from the ever growing burden or murderers, thieves, rapists, etc. (McCann)

As any science of its time, Eugenics did progress in America, but there was increasing numbers on both sides of the debate. Science, methodology and studies would justify falsify, prove and disprove both sides. The end result was that the science was accepted, and did play a role in American thought, politics and economics.

American Legislation

In the United States eugenics found its way into not only the minds of economists and and thiners of the day but also into politics. Legislation started a couple decades later than the movement did, as the popularity grew.