This Date in History: Eugenics Sterilization in America

March 09, 1907: The first U.S. eugenic sterilization law was passed by the Indiana legislature. This law allowed for sterilization of "confirmed criminals, idiots, imbeciles, and rapists." By 1917, fourteen more states followed this example. A variety of "defectives" were forced to undergo sterilization, including epileptics, the mentally ill, those with low IQ scores, and a variety of criminals. By 1929, twenty-three states had eugenics laws on the books, providing for the sterilization of various types of citizens in order to eliminate any possible progeny. The Indiana law was struck down by the Indiana State Supreme Court in 1921 but replaced by similar one in 1923. Eventually, the 1942 Supreme Court case of Skinner v. State of Oklahoma invalidated all such laws.