The Inhumane Testing of Birth Control Pills on Latin American Women
The biggest concern for humanity has always been human welfare. As a result, before releasing drugs into the market for sale and use, researchers in most fields, especially medicine, perform exclusive tests. The experiments have been crucial ground procedures in containing a variety of medical conditions. The case of birth control pills being tested on Latin American women, on the other hand, was not only inhumane but also demystifying (Gonzalez-Delgado & Boyle, 2014).
Testing and Consequences: A Violation of Human Rights
In 1960, the United States made birth control pills legal (Marks, 1999). Before that, the drug's development team tested it on rats and mice. That changed when doctors began testing the drug on over 1500 women, some who were poor and others in prison (Towghi, 2016). The poor women may have been handed the pills without the truth regarding the purpose and the side effects. Watkins (2011) argues that these women definitely had hope and aspirations to have families at some point in their lives. Early investigations revealed that some Latin American women in prisons were part of the test because of forceful directives by the prevailing system. Despite the opposition by some doctors, the sponsors of the project did not heed anything and went ahead with their trials. The outcome may have affected others negatively, but they could not get compensation of any form as the government was aware of these proceedings and they had a diminished perception that it was for the good of the country.
Exploitation and Loss of Lives: Lessons from History
Watkins (2011) explains that according to doctor's reports, there is a record of three healthy women that died in the course of the trial. The author further compares the scenario to the Tuskegee Syphilis trial in Alabama that took place for 40 years affecting the lives of 600 African Americans. The medical tests on humans were nothing rather than exploitation of the people of color. Despite the intended objective, it is inhumane to test drugs on humans, and the society must fight against such a practice. It not only affected the livelihood of the innocent and unenlightened women but also claimed lives. Humanity should fight for the freedom and rights of all to make the globe a better place for the present and future generations.
References
Gonzalez-Delgado, C., & Boyle, D. (2014). For The Greater Good: Eugenics an Experiments on The Female Population in Puerto Rico. History, Memory, and Media.
Marks, L. (1999). Human guinea pigs? The history of the early oral contraceptive clinical trials. History and technology, 15(4), 263-288.
Towghi, F. (2016). The Re-colonization of South Asian Women’s Bodies: Normalizing Off-Label Experiments in the Pharmaceuticalization of Homebirths Negotiating Normativity (pp. 113-130): Springer.
Watkins, E. S. (2011). On the pill: A social history of oral contraceptives, 1950-1970: JHU Press.
