Sterilized Behind Bars - New TYT & CIR Documentary
Summary
TLDRThis video explores the disturbing history of forced sterilizations in California's prison system. Between 2006 and 2010, 148 women were sterilized without proper consent, echoing a dark legacy of eugenics in the state. The investigation uncovers how medical professionals and prison officials violated regulations, pressuring women to undergo irreversible procedures. Interviews with former inmates highlight the coercion they experienced, while officials pass blame. The scandal draws attention to the ongoing fight for prisoner rights and the need for accountability in medical practices within the justice system.
Takeaways
- đ Women in California prisons underwent forced sterilizations without proper consent between 2006 and 2010.
- đ Many of these sterilizations violated established rules, with officials knowingly breaking regulations.
- đ California has a dark history of state-sponsored sterilizations and eugenics, sterilizing 20,000 people over the years.
- đą Women affected by the sterilizations described feeling dehumanized, humiliated, and coerced.
- đ”ïžââïž Reporter Cory Johnson broke the story, revealing 148 sterilizations during a five-year period.
- đĄ California was a leader in eugenics, and its practices even influenced Nazi Germanyâs eugenics program.
- âïž Legal aid organizations like Justice Now documented cases of forced sterilizations, but verifying them is difficult.
- đ„ Dr. James Heinrich, a key figure at Valley State Prison, was named in the investigation for promoting these sterilizations.
- đ€ Despite new regulations, federal courts found medical care in California prisons violated constitutional rights as late as 2006.
- đ An audit is ongoing to investigate these cases further, with hopes for more accountability and legislative clarity.
Q & A
What event prompted the investigation into sterilizations in California prisons?
-The investigation into sterilizations in California prisons was prompted by a report from the Center for Investigative Reporting in 2013, which revealed that women were being sterilized without proper consent.
How many women were sterilized in California prisons between 2006 and 2010?
-According to the investigation, 148 women were sterilized in California prisons between 2006 and 2010.
What historical practices in California were connected to the sterilizations?
-California has a long history of state-sponsored sterilizations and eugenics practices, including the sterilization of prisoners by Dr. Leo Stanley, who removed and replaced the testicles of male inmates. The state also conducted over 20,000 sterilizations during the eugenics era, accounting for one-third of all sterilizations in the U.S.
What role did Dr. James Heinrich play in the recent sterilizations in California prisons?
-Dr. James Heinrich was the chief OBGYN at Valley State Prison and was responsible for a significant increase in sterilizations between 2006 and 2010. He has been accused of pressuring women into undergoing sterilization procedures.
What is the significance of Californiaâs 1970s legislation regarding sterilizations?
-In the 1970s, sterilizations were prohibited at all state institutions in California unless medically necessary. This legislation was further clarified in 1995, but the investigation found that sterilizations continued to occur in prisons despite these laws.
What were some of the womenâs experiences with sterilization in prison?
-Women reported being pressured or coerced into sterilization procedures without full understanding or proper consent. Some felt humiliated and treated as less than human, while others said doctors dismissed their concerns or misled them about the necessity of the surgeries.
What is the link between California's eugenics program and Nazi Germany?
-Nazi Germany modeled its eugenics program on the theories developed in California. Scientists at Stanford promoted sterilization as a way to improve society and shared research with Third Reich counterparts in the 1930s.
How did the California prison system justify the cost of sterilizations?
-Dr. James Heinrich, who oversaw many of the sterilizations, justified the cost by arguing that the money spent on sterilizations was small compared to the savings in welfare costs by preventing unwanted children.
What oversight existed to prevent these sterilizations, and why did they continue?
-A federal receivers office was established in 2006 to oversee medical care in California prisons, including enforcing the ban on sterilizations. However, evidence suggests that the receivers office knew about the sterilizations and failed to stop them between 2006 and 2010.
What were the main concerns expressed during the hearings in California regarding prison sterilizations?
-The hearings in California raised concerns about informed consent and whether the women in prison were properly informed about the sterilization procedures. Many women felt coerced or manipulated into agreeing to the procedures, and there was a call for clearer laws and accountability for the doctors involved.
Outlines
đ The Emotional Toll of Sterilization
The opening paragraph presents a personal account of a woman's emotional devastation after learning she had been sterilized without her consent while in prison. She expresses the profound loss she felt, describing it as taking away her womanhood. This event had a lasting impact on her mental and emotional well-being, as she struggled to cope with the sense of violation and trauma.
đČ California's Sterilization Scandal Exposed
This paragraph provides a historical overview of a report in 2013 by the Center for Investigative Reporting, which uncovered the sterilization of women in California prisons between 2006 and 2010. Public hearings followed, raising concerns about civil rights violations. Cory Johnson, the reporter behind the story, discovered that 148 women were sterilized, despite clear rules prohibiting such procedures. The story draws connections to California's history of eugenics and involuntary sterilization practices in state prisons.
đ California's Troubling Eugenics History
The paragraph dives deeper into California's eugenics program, revealing that it was one of the most aggressive in the country. California sterilized approximately 20,000 people, accounting for one-third of all sterilizations in the U.S. The Nazis even modeled their eugenics program after Californiaâs practices. Johnson links this troubling past to the present-day sterilizations in California's prisons, raising the possibility that the procedures might have persisted well into the 21st century despite legal prohibitions.
đ Personal Accounts of Forced Sterilization
Several personal testimonies from women who underwent sterilizations in prison are featured in this paragraph. These women recount their experiences of being coerced or misled by medical professionals. They describe the shock and confusion they felt when learning about the sterilizations, as well as the emotional trauma of being treated as less than human. The invasive procedures were often performed without proper consent, leaving lasting scars.
đ„ Questionable Medical Practices in Prisons
The focus shifts to a specific doctor, Dr. James Heinrich, who worked as the chief OBGYN at Valley State Prison. Multiple women recall their interactions with him, highlighting his dismissive attitude and questionable medical practices, such as performing examinations while eating. The paragraph underscores Heinrichâs role in many sterilizations and how women, particularly pregnant inmates, were subjected to manipulative medical treatment. A former inmate, Crystal Nan, recounts how Heinrichâs unsettling behavior made her feel uncomfortable and suspicious.
âïž Legal and Ethical Failures in Prison Sterilizations
This paragraph explores the legal and ethical failures surrounding sterilizations in California prisons. A federal court found that medical care in the stateâs prisons violated the Constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment. Despite regulations banning sterilizations, it was revealed that between 2006 and 2010, at least 50 procedures took place. The federal receiverâs office, responsible for overseeing inmate medical care, knew about the sterilizations but failed to act, raising concerns about their role in enforcing the ban.
đ Challenges in Investigating Coercion
The spokesperson for the federal receiver's office, Joyce Heho, discusses how the office is now auditing cases of sterilization in prisons. She denies any knowledge of forced sterilizations but admits that inappropriate procedures occurred. When asked about the womenâs claims of coercion, Heho cites patient privacy regulations, avoiding direct answers about specific cases. She assures that current regulations aim to prevent further coercion, though many remain skeptical of the receiverâs office and its ability to address past abuses.
đ The Prisoner's Dilemma and Coercion
Misty Rojo, a former inmate, shares her perspective on the coercive environment in prisons. She explains how inmates often feel pressured to comply with medical procedures, even if they do not fully understand them. This paragraph discusses the power dynamics at play in prison, where doctorsâ suggestions feel more like commands. Rojo highlights how informed consent is compromised in such an environment, as prisoners are conditioned to obey in order to avoid further punishment.
đ Lack of Answers and Ongoing Investigations
The final paragraph describes the frustration surrounding hearings aimed at investigating prison sterilizations. Despite efforts to uncover the truth, few answers were provided. The focus is on a lack of clarity as to why regulations were ignored, and why such practices were allowed to continue for so long. While the medical board is investigating Dr. Heinrich, many feel that justice has yet to be served. The paragraph closes with a reflection on the emotional toll this ongoing issue has had on the affected women.
Mindmap
Keywords
đĄSterilization
đĄEugenics
đĄConsent
đĄCoercion
đĄCalifornia Prisons
đĄFederal Receivers Office
đĄInformed Consent
đĄReproductive Rights
đĄJustice Now
đĄMedical Ethics
Highlights
The emotional trauma of being sterilized without consent, with women feeling less than human and deprived of their womanhood.
Between 2006 and 2010, 148 women were sterilized in California prisons, with the state admitting to the illegal surgeries.
California has a dark history with eugenics, sterilizing 20,000 people, accounting for one-third of all sterilizations in the U.S.
The Nazis modeled their eugenics program on theories developed in California, where sterilization was seen as a way to improve society.
In 1995, regulations were put in place to prevent sterilizations, but illegal procedures continued as recently as 2010.
Many women reported being sterilized without proper consent, including coerced hysterectomies and tubal ligations.
Cory Johnsonâs investigative report highlighted how women were misled, with some not even being informed they were being sterilized.
Crystal Nan, who served 5 years in prison, described how Dr. James Heinrich persuaded women to undergo sterilization, treating them like less than human.
Dr. Heinrich, who was responsible for many of the sterilizations, justified the procedures by stating that it would save money on welfare for unwanted children.
Inmates reported feeling coerced to sign forms for sterilization procedures, as they were conditioned to comply with authority in the prison system.
Justice Now, a legal aid organization, documented numerous cases of sterilizations where women came out of surgery without their ovaries or uterus.
The receiverâs office, responsible for medical care oversight in California prisons, was aware of the sterilizations but failed to stop them until 2010.
In 2006, federal courts found that medical care in California prisons violated the Constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
There is concern that the issue of prison sterilizations may be brushed under the rug, with systemic failures in enforcing regulations.
The California medical board is now investigating Dr. Heinrich, but many women feel it is too late for justice.
Transcripts
it's scary to know that your life is in
someone's hands like that and they could
just do whatever they want without your
[Music]
[Music]
consent
I would never forget it I felt literally
less than a
woman oh my God I can't even
[Music]
explain emotionally I was like I cried
and I cried I was like they took part of
my
Womanhood I was really messed up for a
[Music]
while
in the summer of 2013 the center for
investigative reporting broke the
disturbing story about the sterilization
of women in California prisons a story
that prompted hearings in the state
capital when a recent Center for
investigative reports story broke
claiming that women in the California
prison system were undergoing
sterilizations many of us were shocked
and outraged I think this is something
that unites all of us to protect the
civil rights of people who are not
free in the gallery was the reporter who
broke the story Cory Johnson he found
that between 2006 and
2010 148 women were sterilized in
California's prisons the state has
admitted that they have done these
illegal surgeries but we don't actually
know who they did them on what we found
thus far in the reporting is that uh
there were rules in place and that um
the officials involved in recommending
uh these procedures to the women knew
that the rules were in place and and
consciously decided to break the
rules how was this allowed to happen to
understand how it's important to look at
California's long history of state
sponsored sterilizations and even
Eugenics if you look back there was this
doctor by the name of Leo Stanley who
went into prisons and literally removed
the test testicles of male inmates and
replaced them with testicles of men who
had died but were deemed socially fit
and he had sterilized as many as 600 men
in the state of California and if you
look at California as a whole you'll
notice that it was actually the worst
state when it came to the Eugenics
program they basically sterilized as
many as 20,000 people and accounted for
about onethird of sterilizations in the
entire
[Music]
country
the Nazis modeled their Eugenics program
on theories developed in California that
was my initial impetus you know to look
at sterilizations that occurred you know
in the early
1900s scientists at Stanford promoted
sterilization as a way to improve
society and even traded papers in the
1930s with their Third Reich
counterparts and so as I'm digging to
try to learn more about his historical
Eugenics I get this tip that perhaps
there was more current day
sterilizations that had taken place and
that that these sterilizations may have
occurred in the prisons in the 1970s
sterilizations were prohibited at all
state institutions unless they were
medically necessary finally in 1995 even
clearer regulations were put in place to
close this chapter in California's
history but began investigating suspect
sterilizations that occurred as recently
as 2010 so I reached out and I cast my
net really wide and I took trips all
across the state um but for for a lot of
people uh talking about whether they
were sterilized is a very tough thing to
do it's a lot of Shame that's around it
there's a lot of guilt there's a lot of
hurt there's a lot of pain Cory
interviewed several women for his report
these are extracts from what they told
him read out by actors he said so we're
going to be doing this Tu liation right
I'm like tubo liation what are you
talking about I don't want any procedure
I just want to have my baby I went into
a straight
panic I figured that's just what happens
in prison that that's the best kind of
doctor you're going to
get he never told me nothing about
nothing
one of his nurses asked me how many kids
do you have she said seven like she was
just so appalled I felt
humiliated and insulted you know I made
a mistake and I'm here but I love my
kids being treated like I was less than
human It produced in me a
despair this is the drawer for the
destruction of reproductive capacity
Justice now a legal aid organization in
Oakland began documenting cases of
prison sterilization several years ago
and we started to receive reports from
people about having gone in for um
different kinds of reproductive care or
um surgeries and coming out without
their ovaries coming out without their
uterus the allegations they gathered
from former inmates are shocking but
difficult to verify this is what the the
women told Justice now again read by
actors he had a camera inside of me he
says he has to do this to give me a
hysterctomy I said I don't want a
hysterctomy he said how old are you I
said I'm 44 he said well you're too old
to have any more children so it doesn't
really matter I finally got sent to Meda
hospital to get a
talectomy and I met five women from
Valley State women's prison getting Hy
toies within a 24-hour
period there's a joke going around that
Meda is selling women's
uteruses I went to the library and I
picked up a few things on
hysterectomies and when I read the
pamphlet it had nothing to do with why I
had my
hysterectomy when I went back to my
paperwork it said prolapsed
uterus he never told me anything about
that
so I wonder if that's what he had to
write to get the hysterctomy
approved so when I heard stories like
these naturally you know I tried to
check them out Cory analyzed records of
the most common methods of sterilization
carried out in California's prisons over
the last 14 years he found a system
riddled with questionable procedures and
noticed that in 2006 the sterilization
spiked that was when Dr James Heinrich
became the chief OBGYN at Valley State
Prison my name is Crystal Nan I spent 5
and a half years at Valley State Prison
for Women Crystal was serving time for
her part in an armed robbery committed
by her boyfriend at 19 crystal found
herself pregnant and behind bars Dr
Hinrich was the main GYN doctor there at
the time when I first got there when I
first saw him he looked like oh he you
know he looks like a nice guy but when I
would ask him questions about my
pregnancy he would laugh at it and make
me feel stupid so then I didn't I didn't
feel comfortable with him after after
that and it it was weird because he
would examine um when he he would he
would be eating popcorn all the time
popcorn cheese and crackers and he would
be examining what he would be eating and
that's to me that's not it's not
hygienic you just it's it was gross so
it just it just creeped me out Crystal
was under Dr heinrich's care during her
pregnancy her baby was taken away Less
Than 3 days after she gave birth they
came and they got him I felt like I was
really alone now she was then assigned a
job in the prison's infirmary which
meant working under Dr Heinrich where
she witnessed firsthand how he persuaded
women to be sterilized well sometimes
there someone out there that maybe
needed a peup or needed something cuz
I'd have to wait behind the screen until
you know a nurse came over or came out
or poked out or I would say excuse me
you know when they were finished talking
like I need something and they would you
know come so I would hear you know I I
heard Dr hinr talking about well maybe
you know you should do something so you
can't have any more kids because if if
that's how your life is and you don't
have any support that's why I know for a
fact that people weren't just saying it
it's it's true Crystal wasn't surprised
that women felt they had been coerced by
their doctor inside of prison once
you're in there it's it's as if you're
treated as an animal as that you have no
rights no one's going to care because
basically you've been to prison so they
feel like that you're you're less than
and that you you know you don't deserve
to have kids you committed a crime
you're in prison you're doing your time
and they're thinking that yeah we're
doing Society of favor by not letting
you
reproduce we were told Dr Hinrich was
too ill to speak to us for this film in
an earlier interview he denied
pressuring anyone and said the money
spent to perform these operations in
prison was small compared to what you
save in welfare paying for these
unwanted children as they procreate more
in 2006 the same year Heinrich was hired
federal courts found that Medical Care
in California prisons violated the
Constitutional ban on cruel and unusual
punishment the court set up what they
call a federal receivers office its job
is to oversee the medical care for all
the inmates in California they're
responsible for enforcing the ban on
sterilizations however according to a
2008 document from the receivers office
itself they knew sterilizations were
continuing Justice now says this raises
serious concerns about whether the
receiver's office was doing its job we
received the
documentation of two bations being
performed between 2006 and 2010 directly
from the federal receivers office and 50
of those happened between 2008 and 2010
the California Department of Corrections
told us that any questions about without
sterilizations must be directed to the
receiver's office I feel like everyone
keeps passing the buck no one wants to
answer any questions so we're going to
talk to this woman named Joyce heho
she's the spokesperson for the
receiver's office I want to know why the
receiver's office didn't investigate
this until 2010 when there was evidence
indicating that they knew it was going
on as early as
2008 first of all I just want to mention
that number one under the regulations a
tubal liation shouldn't be performed but
what we can see from going back and
looking at the cases that were being
performed is that inmates were um asked
um as part of a service being provided
to them whether or not they wanted to
have a tubal liation and if so it
appears that the inmates were being
provided with um in an informed consent
form and talked to with regard to the
procedure that that uh was being offered
to them so have you spoken to the
doctors about any of this are they being
investigated and will there be any
consequences for their role in these
tubal ligations with all of the
information that we've provided to our
doctors and all of the patient education
with our patient uh education with our
doctors a doctor now performing a tubal
liation in our system would be very
egregious and absolutely would be
something thing that would be a
dismissible offense we have no
information at this time that any
procedure was ever forced on a female
were these procedures inappropriate
absolutely but were they forced um every
indication we have is that this has not
happened but where's the line I mean
there were two when I gave Joyce
specific examples of women who did feel
coerced she wouldn't talk about them
claiming patient
privacy so we are having the audit to
specifically look into these cases so I
can't specifically talk about each
individual case due to hippo regulations
but we know that the audit will delve
into each procedure to determine what
happened and why the audit is still
ongoing and the findings will be due out
early next year according to the State
House what we do is at Justice now
there's concern that the entire issue
may be brushed under the rug we spoke to
Joy hey
uh from the receiver's office she
basically said that they are now putting
certain regulations in place to prevent
this type of intimidation Behind Bars
yeah that's that's interesting that she
says that and again it's it's really
hard I mean I'm not saying Joyce heo is
a liar she doesn't know what she's
talking about but you have to remember
she was not working there during those
years people are still being coerced
because we're we're throwaways we're
cast out of society we were locked away
from society so we're basically
society's trash and a lot of their eyes
so it's easy for them to just treat us
as
such Misty Rojo knows this firsthand she
served nearly 9 years for attempted
murder at Valley State women's prison
she says at the heart of the
sterilization issue is informed consent
when prison doctors ask you to sign a
form it's not as cut and dry as it may
seem to those who have never been locked
up so for them to say we feel like you
should do this you feel more or less
compelled to comply because that's what
you're taught in there you comply with
the rules so you can get out so if you
can imagine that type of structure to be
asked to sign off your right to have
children it's still not inform it's not
very consensual it doesn't feel safe it
doesn't feel
comfortable the hearings last August in
California were a first step in state
efforts to uncover what really happened
with these sterilizations Behind Bars
they had representatives from the
Federal Court the receiver's office show
up it was a packed room there was a lot
of emotion in the room when you're in
prison you do what you're told to do to
get out period so even in the idea of
medical care if a doctor tells you you
should do this you're automatically
inclined to feel like you should do it
simply because of the environment you're
in and you're likely to sign a paper
without fully understanding the lifelong
ramications especially if they hand you
a paper you sign it that's it some
people may be happy with that decision
but at the end of the day it is not
informed consent and is coercive thank
you but in terms of detailed answers
into why this practice had been going on
uh in violation of the rules possibly
going all the way back from the early 9s
we didn't get any closer to getting any
answers in that hearing at
all what I guess what I'm trying to say
is we had a regulation in place and for
some some reason that regulation was not
followed and so we had some conflicting
um information going out to the people
um within the department and we think
that that's an important part of the
story shortly after the hearings we
obtain this letter showing that the
California medical board is
investigating the now retired Dr Hinrich
it's scary to know that your life is in
someone's hands like that you're um and
they could just do whatever they want
without your consent they could do it
and get away with
it without any repercussions or anything
going on and that it took this long for
it to be
exposed the Ultimate Dream would be for
them to pass a bill to further clarify
laws so that they know no one can do
this ever I would love for the doctors
um to have to take responsibility for
the surgeries that they did do um and I
would like for the people whom this
happened to to know that this was not
supposed to happen to
[Music]
them
Voir Plus de Vidéos Connexes
The Unjust Sterilization of Mexican-American Women in Los Angeles (by Claire Sulzer)
Medical Care & Race: Medical Racism
The dark side of Turkey's beauty industry | DW Documentary
The Most Evil Human Experiments You've Never Heard Of
Bobrisky, EFCC, Nigerian Corrections Accused Of Bribery+ Tinubu To Reshuffle Cabinet| W/OjyOkpe
The movement that inspired the Holocaust - Alexandra Minna Stern and Natalie Lira
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)