Preaching Eugenics: Religious Leaders and the American Eugenics Movement PDF
Preview Preaching Eugenics: Religious Leaders and the American Eugenics Movement
Preaching Eugenics: Religious Leaders and the American Eugenics Movement CHRISTINE ROSEN OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS Preaching Eugenics Preaching Eugenics Religious Leaders and the American Eugenics Movement christine rosen 1 2004 3 Oxford NewYork Auckland Bangkok BuenosAires CapeTown Chennai DaresSalaam Delhi HongKong Istanbul Karachi Kolkata KualaLumpur Madrid Melbourne MexicoCity Mumbai Nairobi Sa˜oPaulo Shanghai Taipei Tokyo Toronto Copyright(cid:1)2004byOxfordUniversityPress,Inc. PublishedbyOxfordUniversityPress,Inc. 198MadisonAvenue,NewYork,NewYork10016 www.oup.com OxfordisaregisteredtrademarkofOxfordUniversityPress Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced, storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmitted,inanyformorbyanymeans, electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recording,orotherwise, withoutthepriorpermissionofOxfordUniversityPress. LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData Rosen,Christine. Preachingeugenics:religiousleadersandtheAmericaneugenics movement/ChristineRosen. p.cm. Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex. ISBN0-19-515679-X 1.Eugenics—UnitedStates—History—20thcentury. 2.Eugenics—Religiousaspects.I.Title. HQ755.5.U5R672003 363.9'2'0973'0904—dc21 2003010981 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica onacid-freepaper For my beloved parents, Louis and Pamela Stolba This page intentionally left blank Acknowledgments Thecompletionofthisbookwouldnothavebeenpossiblewithout thegeneroussupportoftheEthicsandPublicPolicyCenterin Washington,D.C.,whichhasprovidedmewithanintellectualhome andaccesstocolleagueswhoseinsightsIbenefitfromonadailyba- sis.IowespecialthankstoHillelFradkin,thepresidentoftheCen- ter,forhisenthusiasmandencouragementofthisproject. AgrantfromtheEarhartFoundationanditspresident,David Kennedy,gavemetheopportunitytoseethisprojectthroughto completion.TheAmericanPhilosophicalSocietyprovidedresearch supportintheearlieststagesthrougharesidentfellowshipatthe Society’sLibraryinPhiladelphia.TheHistoryDepartmentatEmory Universityprovidedyearsofsupportandanidealgraduatelearning environment.WhenIfirstcametoWashington,D.C.,ChrisDe- MuthandtheAmericanEnterpriseInstituteprovidedafirst-ratein- troductiontotheworldofpublicpolicy.Appreciationandthanksare duetotheoutstandingarchivistsIhadthepleasureofmeetingdur- ingtheresearchandwritingofthisbook,includingthoseatthe AmericanPhilosophicalSocietyLibrary,theMullenLibraryatCath- olicUniversity,theManuscriptDivisionoftheLibraryofCongress, SterlingLibraryatYaleUniversity,BurkeLibraryatUnionTheologi- calSeminary,theRareBooksandSpecialCollectionsdivisionofthe NewYorkPublicLibrary,andtheSouthernHistoricalCollectionat theUniversityofNorthCarolina,ChapelHill. ThanksarealsoduetoCynthiaReadatOxfordUniversityPress, whohasbeenanenthusiasticeditorandsupporterofthisbook fromthebeginning. viii acknowledgments The deep gratitude I feel for Georg Kleine, who first encouraged me to study history, can hardly be conveyed here. His influence has been immeas- urable, both as a teacher and a friend, and I never would have embarked on thispathwithouthissupportandfineexample.Tohavesomeoneofhisacuity, humor,andintellectualgenerosityasamentorisarareprivilege. I was extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity to learn how to research and write about history from a scholar and teacher as exemplary as Patrick Allitt. It was in one of his provocative graduate seminars that I first learned about the eugenics movement, and he has encouraged that interest ever since. The great insight and joy he brings to his work as a historianand the friendship and excellent guidance he has offered me over the years have beenaconstantsourceofinspiration. As a student at Emory, I also had the opportunity to study with several historians who are model teachers and scholars, including Elizabeth Fox- Genovese,EugeneGenovese,MaryOdem,andJonathanPrude. Manyfriendsandfamilyofferedmoralandintellectualsupportduringthe writing of this book: Kirsten Orr, Christina Manning, John Hynes, Marnie Kenney,MarciSliman,SallySatel,ChristinaSommers,CharlotteHays,Karlyn Bowman, and Alexander Rose; Sidney and Estelle Rosen, Joanna Rosen, and NealKatyalwereespeciallysupportive.Mysisters,CatherineRemickandCyn- thia Stolba, offered boundless encouragement throughout; our frequent con- versations about our own family’s odder traits served as useful reminders of thedangersoftoomuchhereditarianthinking. ThegratitudeandappreciationIfeelformyhusband,Jeffrey,arewithout limits. Contents Introduction,3 1. FerventCharity,25 2. CertifyingEugenicPurityintheChurches,53 3. ProtestantPromotersandJewishEugenics,85 4. EugenicistsDiscoverJesus,111 5. Sterilization,BirthControl,andtheCatholicConfrontationwith Eugenics,139 6. TwilightConverts,165 Conclusion,183 Notes,189 SelectedBibliography,243 Index,277
The list of books you might like
