Tag Archives: the new eugenics

Jeff Sessions’ Praise of 1924 Johnson-Reed Act Recalls a Dark Past

As President Calvin Coolidge signed the 1924 Johnson-Reed Act, he stated, "America must remain American." The Johnson-Reed Act, until 1965, restricted immigration of multiple racial and ethnic minorities into the United States before World War II, including Eastern European Jews. Many of these Jews later died in the Holocaust. The Act restricted these racial and ethnic groups in part due to eugenics “science” that said these groups were more likely to be “socially inadequate,” and become a “public burden.” Eugenicist Harry Laughlin, who managed the Eugenics Record Office, testified in 1920 about foreign-born groups in hospitals for the “insane.” His testimony included the remark, “the Italians, Russians, Austrians (largely Jews) constitute a large proportion of the insane.” Laughlin had been appointed around 1922 as the “Expert Eugenics Agent” to the House Committee on Immigration and Naturalization, and much of his research and testimonies provided the justification … Continue Reading ››

Autism Speaks: How Long Does It Take to Look into It?

Team pages for the Autism Speaks Walks are pretty standard fare. You can go to each page to learn a little bit about a team who is pledging to raise money and donate to them yourself. A quick search of participants shows a wide variety of folks including companies, families, and organizations, which made the “Soldiers of Odin Canada - Ontario South Division“ not particularly unique outside of the comparatively large roster (most team pages are for about 2 people, Soldiers’ page has 10). That is of course, unless you know who the Soldiers of Odin are. At first glance, one might assume they’re just a biker group. Both the name and their team picture, featuring a number of guy all wearing leathers and jean vests, suggest as much. Being a biker group is fine. Bikers have been making the headlines for … Continue Reading ››