On Thursday, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. hosted the third lecture in their Black History Month series entitled “Eugenics: The Wood Chopper Post Emancipation.”
The presentation informed students about a “black genocide” by the U.S. government and Planned Parenthood through the birth control pill and abortion. The open discussion revolved around segments of the documentary called “Maafa 21,” which is available on YouTube under the title: “Black Genocide Maafa 21.”
The film argues that the birth control pill and abortion were and are still used to eliminate the black population.
The film also shed light on some health concerns with the birth control pill.
Aisha Jalloh, a sophomore health administration major, did not realize that extensive use of the pill can lead to miscarriages and infertility.
Jalloh was shocked the the pill could be dangerous. “I think we need to inform a lot of people,” she said.
The film went into detail about how the birth control penetrated into American culture with the goal of exterminating the “black race” and showed the government playing the pioneering role in the eugenics movement.
The film included a recording of President Nixon saying how he wants “population control of the Negros.” President Eisenhower is quoted in a newspaper about how he does not want the “feebleminded” and “lazy” to reproduce more children while whites reproduce less.
“Feebleminded,” “lazy,” and “unfit” were some of the words used by the American Eugenics Society to promote the sterilization of those those who were “non-white.” The group used specific phrases to avoid public outcry of these practices.
Margaret Sanger, who created Planned Parenthood, was a staunch racist and supporter of eugenics, and a member of the American Eugenics Society.
Eugenics is the inherently racist theory that a population can improve through only specific people reproducing.
In 1932, Margaret Sanger changed the name of the American Birth Control League to Planned Parenthood. Board members included former members from both the American Birth Control League and the American Eugenics Society.
The Planned Parenthood facilities immediately appeared in more black communities than white communities.
With the tremendous impact of the combined forces of the US government and Planned Parenthood, the black community decreased in size after the implementation and push of these programs in their communities. As of 2014, African Americans are 13.2 percent of the population, according to the US Census Bureau. Yet, in 1790, the population was 19%. One of the presenters argued that this drop in birth rate is directly linked to the birth control campaign.
The film also mentioned how church leadership became part of the eugenics policies by preaching the promotion of birth control.
“I’m really happy I learned something new.” Jalloh said. “I didn’t know how bad [the pill] affects the body.”
Jalloh said that she can see both the positive and negative aspects. A member of her family uses the pill for control menstrual pain.
Correction: An earlier version of this article cited “Alpha Kappa Alpha Society Inc.” as hosting the event. It has since been corrected. This article is also about the third event of this nature, not the second, as previously noted.
