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Between the years 1932 and 1972, the Public Health Service of Tuskegee, Alabama, with support of the federal government, ran a series of studies on the effects of the venereal disease syphilis on African-American males. These poor, rural subsistence farmers did not know that they had syphilis, and the PHS only told them they had “bad blood” and would be provided treatment for it, provided they cooperated with experimenters. However, no viable treatment was ever administered, even after the discovery in the early 1940’s that penicillin was a treatment for the disease. Instead, the government just let the disease run its course on these human lab rats.
An article written in the New York Times in 1972 exposed the government’s secret and a large civil action suit was filed in court. The offspring and close relatives were provided monetary compensation from the government, and in 1997 President Clinton offered an unprecedented national apology to the 11 survivors of the horrific experiments.
Some questions to ponder:
1.How could the government justify such a gross negligence of medical ethics to allow these suffering people to go untreated?
2. Can the African-American population ever trust the government when it comes to public health care in the wake of these experiments?
There are several audiences that would be interested in this particular research topic. First and foremost would be the African-American population of the United States. The government, at the time of these experiments, was telling this audience that they were equal under the law, but it allowed the Public Health Service to abuse human life in the way that it did. Secondly, anyone interested in bioethics would find a terrific topic to argue in a paper.
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tuskegee, tuskegee syphilis study, tuskegee and medical ethics, tuskegee and syphilis
Gray, Fred D. (1998). The Tuskegee Syphilis Study: The real story and beyond, [book]. Available: Black Belt Press [17 Sept. 01]. R853.H8 G7 1998.
Jones, James H. (1993). Bad Blood: the Tuskegee syphilis experiment, [book]. Available: Free Press [17 Sept. 01]. R853.H8 J66 1993.
The Deadly Deception, [Videorecording]. (1993). Available: Films for the Humanities & Sciences [17 Sept. 01]. 65-V4580.
Cannon, Angie. (1997, May 16). "Distrust of medicine is legacy of Tuskegee; Study legendary among African-Americans." Houston Chronicle [Online], p.5. Available: Lexis-Nexis [17 Sept. 01].
Kenna Kathleen. (1997, May 16). "U.S. to apologize for experiments on black farmers denied treatment for syphilis in the name of science." Toronto Star [Online], p. A16. Available: Lexis-Nexis [17 Sept. 01].
Richwald, Gary A. (1997, May 16). "Beyond apologies, Stamp out syphilis; Disease: After disgrace of Tuskegee study, why does U.S. cut back on funds for treatment and eradication." Los Angeles Times [Online]. p. 9. Available: Lexis-Nexis [17 Sept. 01].
Snowbeck, Christopher. (2001, March 11). "Tuskegee syphilis study leaves lessons, legacies." Pittsburgh Post-Gazette [Online]. p. B5. Available: Lexis-Nexis [17 Sept. 01].
Wilkerson, Isabel. (1991, June 3). "Medical experiment still haunts blacks." New York Times [Online]. p. 12. Available: Lexis-Nexis [17 Sept. 01].
"Don’t let it happen again." (1997, May 17). The Economist [Online] p.27. Available: Lexis-Nexis [17 Sept. 01]. no author given.
Title: The Tuskegee Syphilis Study Legacy Committee Report
Address: www.med.virginia.edu/hs-library/historical/apology/report.html
Description: This website not only gives a brief history of the infamous experiments, but also provides the conclusions of the committee. It details the ramifications of the experiment, including mistrust of the medical profession by African-Americans.
Source: University of Virginia
Health Sciences, Tuskegee Syphilis Study Legacy Committee.
Title: The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment
Address: www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0762136.html
Description: This site is a good brief synopsis of the experiment. It discusses the bioethical wrongdoings of the researchers on the uninformed research subjects and the deception involved. It discusses the story in the New York Times and President Clinton’s national apology to the survivors.
Source: The Learning Network,
Inc.
Title: Internet Resources on the Tuskegee Study
Address: www.dc.peachnet.edu/~shale/humanities/composition/assignments/experiment/tuskegee.html
Description: This site is an enormous database of Tuskegee study-related links and documents. This website was found by several search engines and it provides any necessary and pertinent information on the study including background, documents, legacy information, editorials and non-print sources. Perhaps the most comprehensive of any site accessed.
Source: Compiled by Dr. Steven
Hale of Georgia Perimeter College
Title: CDC Tuskegee Syphilis Study Page
Address: www.cdc.gov/nchstp/od/tuskegee/index.html
Description: A completely indexed informational page supplied by the Center for Disease Control. It includes all pertinent information including basic information on the disease syphilis, timelines of the study, and facts about the experiment.
Source:
Center for Disease Control/ U.S. Department of Health
Title: Bad Blood: A Case Study of the Tuskegee Syphilis Project
Address: http://showme.missouri.edu/~socbrent/tuskegee.htm
Description: This website provided the most highly detailed accounts of the Tuskegee experiments encountered on the Internet. It provided an overview of the disease, a history of the study, charts, as well as references.
Source: Compiled by A.W. Fourtner,
C.R. Fourtner and C.F. Herreid.
The Internet: Not as Safe as You Think
(Topic Area: Dark Side of the Net)
With the growth of the Internet, Americans are finding it easier and easier to do business with a click of the mouse. Especially around Christmas time, Americans are avoiding shopping malls to do their holiday gift-buying at home. However, the Internet consumer may, unknowingly, fall prey to Internet fraud.
There are many different forms of Internet fraud that are perpertrated on a daily basis. Auctions sites such as eBay are a hot target for criminals, and account for the majority of fraud cases. According to USA Today, 64% of all the referable complaints filed by consumers between May 8 and Nov. 8, 2000, involved some form of auction fraud. (1) Often, these criminals advertise goods for sale, and, upon receiving payment from the other party, fail to deliver the goods.
In the wake of the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington D.C., another common Internet fraud scheme has reared its ugly head. People soliciting phony charities have taken advantage of America's giving nature. Susan Grant, director of the Internet Fraud Watch, a project of the National Consumers League, said that would-be donors should contribute to a charity they know and trust. (2) If in doubt, Grant says they should visit www.give.org, the Web site for the Council of Better Business Bureau's Wise Giving Alliance. (2)
The anonymity of Internet gives thieves and grifters the perfect cover under which to run their scams. However, new technology has enabled many online retailers to protect the privacy of its users from hackers. As well, it is the consumer's responsibility to reamin aware and use common sense when participating in e-commerce.
Notes:
(1) Farrell, Greg. (7 March, 2001). "Net fraud flourishes in auctions," USA Today[Online], p. 2B. Available: Lexis-Nexis [18 Sept. 01].
(2) Miller, Stanley A. (14 September, 2001). "Not all 'charities' into giving; Donors advised to watch for con artists," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel[Online], p. 2B. Available: Lexis-Nexis [18 Sept. 01].
Web Sites on Internet Fraud:
Title: Internet Fraud
Address: http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/fraud
Description: This site is operated by the U.S. Department of Justice. It provides an overview of common Internet scams and also what to do if you fall victim to a scam.
Source:
U.S. Dept. of Justice
Title: The National Fraud Information Center
Address: www.fraud.org
Description: This site is run by the National Consumers League and is an indexed site providing tips to protect against fraud, Internet fraud statistics and various liks to other protection services.
Source:
National Consumers League
Title: Internet Fraud Watch
Address: http://www.fraud.org/internet/intset.htm
Description: A brief Web site that gives a summary of various Internet scams and links to common schemes, incident reports and other informational sites. Also provides links to other sites.
Source: National Consumers' League
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Last updated: 19 November, 2001