Report: California inmates pressured to have sterilizations

July 18, 2013

Physicians under contract with the California prison system sterilized at least 148 female inmates between 2006 and 2010 without required state authorization, according to the Center for Investigative Reporting.

Former prisoners report that doctors repeatedly pressured them to have the procedure, even as they were sedated and undergoing C-sections.

Denying he coerced anyone and referring to the nearly $150,000 he gained from performing some of the sterilizations, a doctor said that “that isn’t a huge amount of money compared to what you save in welfare paying for these unwanted children – as they procreated more.”

 

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Further information:

• Female inmates sterilized in California prisons without approval (Center for Investigative Reporting)
• Lawmakers call for investigation into sterilization of female inmates (Center for Investigative Reporting)
• Three Generations of Eugenics (BreakPoint)