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'''Eugenics''' was a movement which tried to eliminate "dangerous human pests" and "the rising tide of imbeciles" through what has been euphemistically called "[[selective breeding]]". What this meant, in actual practice, was [[forced sterilization]] of American immigrants and minorities (particularly in California).<ref>Crichton, Michael (2004). [http://web.archive.org/web/20070315005147/http://www.michaelcrichton.net/fear/index.html "Why politicized science is dangerous"]. Excerpt from ''State of Fear'' (New York: Harper). Retrieved from March 15, 2007 archive of MichaelCrichton.com at Internet Archive on September 17, 2014.</ref>
'''Eugenics''' was a movement which tried to eliminate "dangerous human pests" and "the rising tide of imbeciles" through what has been euphemistically called "[[selective breeding]]". What this meant, in actual practice, was [[forced sterilization]] of American immigrants and minorities (particularly in California).<ref>Crichton, Michael (2004). [http://web.archive.org/web/20070315005147/http://www.michaelcrichton.net/fear/index.html "Why politicized science is dangerous"]. Excerpt from ''State of Fear'' (New York: Harper). Retrieved from March 15, 2007 archive of MichaelCrichton.com at Internet Archive on September 17, 2014.</ref>
The idea of Eugenics was first developed by Sir Francis Galton in 1865.<ref>Cavanaugh-O'Keefe (2000). [http://web.archive.org/web/20120204002402/http://www.eugenics-watch.com/roots/chap02.html "Chapter two: Francis Galton and the Eugenics Society"]. ''Roots of Racism and Abortion: An Exploration of Eugenics.'' Retrieved from February 4, 2012 archive of Eugenics Watch at Internet Archive on September 17, 2014.</ref> He based his ideas on the work of his cousin [[Charles Darwin]].
==Connection with the theory of evolution==
The theory of evolution suggests that humans evolved to their present state like all living organisms. This implies that, should selective pressures change, humans as a species may also change. In the early 20th century, the term ''Social Darwinism'' was in fashion. This idea stated that the fittest people did the best in life, and tautologically, those who did the best were the fittest. This was often used as a justification for racism and other oppression. Since evolutionary theory does not really apply to individuals, but to populations, this was never a valid application of the theory. However, this idea has continued to be a popular topic.
[[Charles Darwin]] declared in ''The Descent of Man'':
:At some future period, not very distant as measured by centuries, the civilised races of man will almost certainly exterminate, and replace, the savage races throughout the world. At the same time the anthropomorphous apes, as Professor Schaaffhausen has remarked,* will no doubt be exterminated. The break between man and his nearest allies will then be wider, for it will intervene between man in a more civilised state, as we may hope, even than the Caucasian, and some ape as low as a baboon, instead of as now between the negro or Australian and the gorilla.
Darwin was not the first to claim racial superiority. But he was the first to suggest that some races of man "will almost certainly exterminate, and replace" other races of man. His followers developed a new intellectual field called "eugenics" for this mythical biological struggle.
In fact, the term "Eugenics" was coined by Darwin's cousin, [[Francis Galton]].<ref>Cavanaugh-O'Keefe (2000). [http://web.archive.org/web/20120204002402/http://www.eugenics-watch.com/roots/chap02.html "Chapter two: Francis Galton and the Eugenics Society"]. ''Roots of Racism and Abortion: An Exploration of Eugenics.'' Retrieved from February 4, 2012 archive of Eugenics Watch at Internet Archive on September 17, 2014.</ref> He based his ideas on the his cousin's work.
==Etymology and history==
The word "eugenics" is based on Greek roots meaning "well born." The Merriam-Webster dictionary provides 1883 as the date of origin for the term. Later, Darwin's son, Leonard, served as the president of the First Congress of Eugenics in 1912 in London.
The encyclopedia describes eugenics as now being "in disrepute," although Professor Peter Singer of Princeton University has sought to remove the stigma from it. Richard Dawkins has stated in one letter that it no longer be banned from polite discussion.
In the early 1900s, many influential officials advocated Darwinism and eugenics. Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes became a strong proponent. So did many others in prominent government and academic positions. Members of the British Eugenics Society, including the International Planned Parenthood Federation, are listed [http://www.africa2000.com/ENDX/eug_ij.htm).
==Eugenics in America==
Between 1907 and 1937, 32 American states passed eugenics laws requiring sterilization of citizens deemed to be misfits, such as the mentally infirm. Oliver Wendell Holmes and all but one conservative Democratic Justice upheld such laws in a Supreme Court decision that included Holmes' offensive statement that "three generations of imbeciles are enough." Buck v. Bell, 274 U.S. 200, 207 (1927). In fact, the third generation "imbecile" was very bright, but was declared by a eugenics "expert" as "supposed to be a mental defective," apparently without an examination.
==Genocide==
The [[liberal]] American Medical Society provided this summary:<ref>Barondess, Jeremiah A. (November 27, 1996). "Medicine against society: lessons from the Third Reich". ''The Journal of the American Medical Association'', vol. 276, vol. 20, p. 1657(5).</ref>
The [[liberal]] American Medical Society provided this summary:<ref>Barondess, Jeremiah A. (November 27, 1996). "Medicine against society: lessons from the Third Reich". ''The Journal of the American Medical Association'', vol. 276, vol. 20, p. 1657(5).</ref>
:"The publication of Darwin's ''[[Origin of Species]]'' in 1859 led to the rise of the eugenics movement in Europe. Eugenics supporters believed that [[race]]s could be improved by [[selective breeding]]. The Nazi Party adopted this belief and began a campaign against the Jews. Many physicians joined the [[Nazi Party]] because they needed jobs."
:"The publication of Darwin's ''[[Origin of Species]]'' in 1859 led to the rise of the eugenics movement in Europe. Eugenics supporters believed that [[race]]s could be improved by [[selective breeding]]. The Nazi Party adopted this belief and began a campaign against the Jews. Many physicians joined the [[Nazi Party]] because they needed jobs."
Many genocides have been commited in the name of Eugenics, most notably [[the Holocaust]]. Adolf Hitler was a strong believer in eugenics and evolution and believed that Jewish people were closest to apes, followed by Africans, Asians, non-Aryan Europeans, and finally Aryans, who he believed were most evolved.
Many genocides have been commited in the name of Eugenics, most notably [[the Holocaust]]. Adolf Hitler was a strong believer in eugenics and evolution and believed that Jewish people were closest to apes, followed by Africans, Asians, non-Aryan Europeans, and finally Aryans, who he believed were most evolved.