Sterilization of Mentally Retarded People

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the history surrounding the controversial issue of sterilization of mentally retarded people. Discussed is the concept of eugenics, which was adapted by the Nazis. This practice in modern history is also examined. Current ethical attitudes to this belief are explored in the conclusion.

From the Paper:

"The main ethical issue surrounding involuntary sterilization of ethical people has historically concerned whether the surgery was best for the society in which they lived. Whether it was best for the mentally retarded person seemed, throughout most of the history of the "eugenics" movement, which legitimized the procedure, to be only a distant secondary consideration. If it seems barbaric today, however, and it would seem to take a lot of bending of ethical precepts to find a justification for the procedure, one need not look too far back in world or even U.S. history to find abundant proof that it was regarded as morally and ethically appropriate."

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