Eugenics Survey of Vermont

Last updated

The Eugenics Survey of Vermont was a survey that gathered biological, familial, and social information of Vermonters in order to further eugenic policies in the state. [1] The survey existed from 1925-1936 and resulted in the sterilization of at least 250 Vermonters, most of them women. [2] Because of incomplete records, it is likely that the actual number of forced sterilizations was higher than this. [3] [4]

Contents

Background

On January 19, 1927, Henry F. Perkins, a professor of zoology at the University of Vermont, addressed the state legislature and suggested the creation of a record-keeping system for tracking perceived familial deficiencies in the state. [2] [5]

Impact

At least 250 people were forcibly sterilized due to Vermont's policies, which disproportionately impacted marginalized groups. [6] Women, poor people, disabled people, French Canadians, children, and indigenous people (particularly the Abenaki) bore the brunt of the impact. [7] In addition to forced sterilization, families were separated, often by institutionalizing adults while placing children in foster care. [8]

Legacy and contrition

Government of Vermont

On March 31, 2021, the Vermont House of Representatives voted unanimously to apologize for the State's involvement in the eugenics movement. [9] [10] [11]

On May 12, 2021, the Vermont Senate unanimously voted to support the House bill apologizing for the legislature's involvement in the eugenics movement. [9] [12] [13]

In 2023, the state legislature authorized the creation of a truth and reconciliation commission. [14]

University of Vermont

On October 27, 2018, the University of Vermont renamed its library because of Guy Bailey's involvement in eugenics in Vermont. [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] On June 21, 2019, President E. Thomas Sullivan apologized for the University's involvement in the eugenics survey. [20] [21] [22] [23] [7]

Vermont Library Board

On January 9, 2018, the Vermont Library Board voted to recommend renaming of the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award due to Dorothy Canfield Fisher's possible ties to the eugenics movement. [24] [25] [26] On May 3, 2019, the Vermont Department of Libraries announced that the award would be renamed in 2020. [27] [28] The award was subsequently renamed the Vermont Golden Dome Book Award. [29]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vermont</span> U.S. state

Vermont is a landlocked state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the north. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the state had a population of 643,503, ranking it the second least populated U.S. state ahead of Wyoming. It is the nation's sixth smallest state in area. The state's capital of Montpelier is the least populous U.S. state capital. No other U.S. state has a most populous city with fewer residents than Burlington. Vermont is also well known for being the largest producer of true maple syrup in the United States for over 200 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Vermont</span> Public university in Burlington, Vermont, U.S.

The University of Vermont (UVM), officially titled as University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. Founded in 1791, the university is the oldest in Vermont and the fifth-oldest in New England, making it among the oldest in the United States. It is one of the original eight Public Ivies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dorothy Canfield Fisher</span> American author and social activist (1879–1958)

Dorothy Canfield Fisher was an educational reformer, social activist, and best-selling American author in the early 20th century. She strongly supported women's rights, racial equality, and lifelong education. Eleanor Roosevelt named her one of the ten most influential women in the United States. In addition to bringing the Montessori method of child-rearing to the U.S., she presided over the country's first adult education program and shaped literary tastes by serving as a member of the Book of the Month Club selection committee from 1925 to 1951.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Vermont</span>

The geologic history of Vermont begins more than 450 million years ago during the Cambrian and Devonian periods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph DeJarnette</span> American physician

Joseph Spencer DeJarnette was the director of Western State Hospital from 1905 to November 15, 1943. He was a vocal proponent of racial segregation and eugenics, specifically, the compulsory sterilization of the mentally ill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Mark Fogel</span> American academic

Daniel Mark Fogel was President of the University of Vermont, located in Burlington, Vermont, a post he held from July 1, 2002 to July 31, 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vincent Illuzzi</span> American politician

Vincent Illuzzi, Jr. is an American lawyer and politician from Derby, Vermont who formerly served as a Republican member of the Vermont State Senate representing the Essex-Orleans senate district.

The Vermont Golden Dome Book Award annually recognizes one new American children's book selected by the vote of Vermont schoolchildren. It was inaugurated in 1957.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pico Peak</span> Mountain in Vermont

Pico Peak is a mountain in the Green Mountains in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. Pico Peak is flanked to the south by Ramshead Peak. To the north, it faces Deer Leap Mountain across Sherburne Pass. Seen from the pass, the summit of Pico Peak resembles a cone.

Henry Farnham Perkins (1877–1956) was an American zoologist and eugenicist.

Mary Downing Hahn is an American writer of young adult novels and a former school librarian. She is known for books such as Stepping On The Cracks and Wait Till Helen Comes. She published her first book in 1979 and has since written over 30 novels. Her novel What We Saw was published in September 2022.

David Wolf Budbill was an American poet and playwright. He was the author of eight books of poems, eight plays, two novels, a collection of short stories, a children's picture book, and dozens of essays.

The Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki Nation is a state-recognized tribe and nonprofit organization, called AHA "Abenaki Helping Abenaki", whose headquarters and land are based in Vermont. They are often referred to as the Nulhegan Abenaki Tribe or simply, Nulhegan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abraham B. Gardner</span> American politician

Abraham Brookins Gardner was a Vermont attorney and businessman who served as 25th lieutenant governor of Vermont from 1865 to 1867.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guy W. Bailey</span> American politician

Guy Winfred Bailey was an American politician and educator. He served as Secretary of State of Vermont and president of the University of Vermont.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Vermont elections</span>

A general election was held in the U.S. state of Vermont on November 3, 2020. All of Vermont's executive officers will be up for election as well as Vermont's at-large seat in the United States House of Representatives. Primary elections were held on August 11, 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. state of Vermont is part of an ongoing worldwide viral pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019, a novel infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Molly Gray</span> American politician (born 1984)

Molly Rose Gray is an American attorney and politician who served as the 83rd lieutenant governor of Vermont from 2021 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, she was an assistant attorney general for Vermont from 2018 to 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Vermont</span>

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Vermont refers to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members in Vermont.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green Mountain Parkway</span> Proposed scenic parkway in the United States

The Green Mountain Parkway was a proposed scenic highway in the U.S. state of Vermont. The project was first introduced around 1934, and was proposed to run for 260 mi (420 km) over ridges of the Green Mountains. The parkway was modeled after the Blue Ridge Parkway or Skyline Drive in the American South. In 1935, the project was approved, and a referendum was held to choose between a 1936 or 1941 effective date; voters chose the latter date. By 1937, the parkway project became unpopular, and the 1937 legislature repealed the Green Mountain Parkway Act, effectively shuttering the proposal.

References

  1. "Vermont Eugenics". www.uvm.edu. Retrieved 2023-11-13.
  2. 1 2 Dann, Kevin; Carter, Christie (Winter 1991). "From Degeneration to Regeneration: The Eugenics Survey of Vermont, 1925-1936" (PDF). Vermont History: The Proceedings of the Vermont Historical Society. 59 (1): 5–29.
  3. Banner, Greg Sukiennik, Bennington (2021-03-31). "Vermont House unanimously apologizes for its role in eugenics policies". Bennington Banner. Retrieved 2024-01-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. "Vermont's State Archives' Eugenics Movement Collection | C-SPAN.org". www.c-span.org. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  5. "Vermont Historical Society announces new history of the state's eugenics movement, 'Vermont for the Vermonters'". The North Star Monthly. 2023-09-01. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  6. "Coming To Terms With Vermont's Dark History Of Eugenics". Vermont Public. 2017-06-07. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  7. 1 2 Hardy, Nicole (2021-05-10). "Eugenics at UVM: why Abenaki leaders feel the apology wasn't enough". The Vermont Cynic. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  8. Gokee, Amanda (2021-02-21). "90 years after Vermont eugenics survey, lawmakers propose apology to those affected". VTDigger. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  9. 1 2 "Bill Status J.R.H.2". legislature.vermont.gov. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  10. "No. R-114. Joint resolution sincerely apologizing and expressing sorrow and regret to all individual Vermonters and their families and descendants who were harmed as a result of State-sanctioned eugenics policies and practices" (PDF).
  11. Bakuli, Ethan. "Official apology for eugenics program moves ahead in Vermont Legislature". Burlington Free Press. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  12. French, Ellie (2021-05-12). "Senate votes unanimously to apologize for state-supported eugenics". VTDigger. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  13. "Vermont Senate joins House in eugenics apology". AP News. 2021-05-13. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  14. "Vermont forms reconciliation panel after eugenics apology". AP News. 2023-04-28. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  15. DeSmet, Nicole Higgins. "UVM renames library after student outcry over eugenics ties". Burlington Free Press. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  16. "School to remove name from library over eugenics link". AP News. 2018-10-27. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  17. Walsh, Molly. "'Howe' Now: UVM Drops 'Bailey' From Library Name Over Eugenics Ties". Seven Days. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  18. Walsh, Molly. "UVM Apologizes for a Eugenics Survey That Ended in 1936". Seven Days. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  19. "UVM Trustees Approve Removal of Bailey's Name from Bailey/Howe Library | Howe Library". library.uvm.edu. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  20. Walsh, Molly. "UVM Apologizes for a Eugenics Survey That Ended in 1936". Seven Days. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  21. "Statement Regarding UVM and Eugenics – Abenaki Arts & Education Center" . Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  22. Sparkman, Mills (2019-06-27). "Sullivan apologizes for eugenics survey in open letter". The Vermont Cynic. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  23. "UVM President Reaffirms Eugenics Apology". WAMC. 2019-06-21. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  24. Walsh, Molly. "Library Board Pushes to Rename Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award". Seven Days. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  25. "The Dorothy Canfield Fisher Name Should be Removed from the Vermont Book Award". CCTV Center for Media and Democracy. 2011-09-27. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  26. Banner, Bennington (2017-07-09). "Author under scrutiny for long-ago ties to eugenics". VTDigger. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  27. "From the Office of the State Librarian: New Name for Dorothy Canfield Fisher Book Award to Be Selected by Vermont Youth | Department of Libraries". libraries.vermont.gov. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  28. Walsh, Molly. "Dorothy Canfield Fisher Book Award to Be Renamed". Seven Days. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
  29. "Vermont Golden Dome Book Award | Department of Libraries". libraries.vermont.gov. Retrieved 2024-01-20.