Perspectives in Biology and Medicine

EUGENICS AND THE "NEW GENETICS" J. M. FRIEDMAN* Eugenics can be defined as improvement of the human species by selective breeding. Eugenic proposals may be positive, seeking to increase the propagation of "more desirable" types of people; negative, seeking to decrease the propagation of "less desirable" types; or both. Strategies for eugenic improvement of humankind have been put forth for thousands of years. Some of these proposals have been implemented , usually with unfortunate results. Nevertheless, eugenic proposals continue to be promulgated, often with limited understanding of their biological weaknesses and social consequences. This article briefly reviews the history of eugenics and discusses the scientific and social limitations of the concept in light of our current understanding of human genetics. Development of the Modern Eugenics Movement Selective propagation of plants and animals appeared as soon as human societies developed stable agriculture. It was natural that the success of such selective breeding programs among domesticated species should lead to thoughts of similar programs for the improvement of humans, and eugenic proposals have been made throughout recorded history [I]. The origin of modern eugenics in ideas about plant and animal breeding is clear if one considers that Francis Galton, who invented the word "eugenics," originally spoke of it as "viriculture" [2]. Galton, a half-cousin of Charles Darwin, was largely responsible for the acceptance of "scientific" eugenics in the late nineteenth century. Beginning in 1865 with a popular magazine article in which he cataloged notable men in various fields and showed that they were frequently The author expresses gratitude to Dr. Patricia Baird and Ms. Wendy Hird for their helpful suggestions. *Department of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada V6T 1Z3.© 1991 by The University of Chicago. AU rights reserved. 0031-5982/92/3501-0763$01.00 Perspectives inBiology and Medicine, 35, 1 ¦ Autumn 1991 | 145 related to each other [3], Galton promoted the idea that hereditary factors were of great importance in determining human character and success. He therefore advocated prolific reproduction by individuals with desirable traits. Gabon's career was long and distinguished. He established a Laboratory for National Eugenics at the University of London, was awarded the Royal Society's prestigious Copley Medal, and was knighted. Karl Pearson was appointed Galton Professor of Eugenics at the University of London shortly after Gabon's death in 1911. Pearson supported a more active approach to eugenics that included negative incentives [4]. An eminent scholar who developed important new methods in quantitative genetics and in biostatistics, Pearson was champion of the biometrie geneticists who argued against the importance of Mendelian factors in human inheritance. Eugenics became a popular topic for discussion among the social elite in England during the early years of this century. Among those who were interested in eugenic proposals were George Bernard Shaw, H. G. Wells, and Winston Churchill [4]. A Mental Deficiency Bill that provided for segregation of some mentally handicapped individuals was passed by Parliament in 1913 [4], but neither sterilization nor proscription of marriage on eugenic grounds was legally sanctioned in England. Charles Davenport was the foremost scientific proponent of eugenics in the United States at this time [5]. Beginning in 1904 and for many years thereafter, he served as director of the Station for Experimental Evolution and the Eugenics Record Office at Cold Spring Harbor, New York. Davenport excelled at scientific entrepreneurship. His activities were well endowed by the Carnegie Institution of Washington; he also elicited financial support from prominent philanthropic families such as the Harrimans and Rockefellers. In contrast to Galton and Pearson, Davenport was a staunch Mendelian [5]. He collected pedigrees of thousands of families and demonstrated single gene inheritance of albinism, hemophilia, Huntington disease , and several other conditions. Davenport also claimed incorrectly that single abnormal genes often determined the occurrence of insanity, epilepsy, alcoholism, "pauperism," "feeblemindedness," criminality, and prostitution because such conditions show familial aggregation. Davenport became especially concerned about the purported dysgenic effects of immigration ofJews and southern and eastern Europeans into the United States. On the supposition that these were inferior stock, he advocated a more restrictive immigration policy [5]. This position was embodied in the Immigration Act of 1924 [6]. Eugenic concerns were also used in the United...