Coerced Sterilization in Immigrant Detention

Forced and coerced sterilization has a long history in the U.S., particularly aimed against Black, Latine, and Native peoples. The practice originated with the eugenics movement in the early 20th century. Public opinion turned against forced sterilization when people saw its links to Nazi policies and the Holocaust. However, sterilization abuse surged again by the 1960s. The shameful pattern continues with the coerced sterilization of migrants in detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Reports included forced hysterectomies and other unwarranted gynecological procedures.

The complaint against ICDC [Irwin County Detention Center, in Georgia] asserts that officials transferred detainees to a physician who sterilized the women without proper informed consent. The whistleblower, nurse Dawn Wooten, described multiple forms of medical abuse, from failures to protect patients against COVID-19, to forced hysterectomies.

SOURCE: ACLU • AUTHOR: Maya Manian • LAST UPDATED: September 29, 2020