May 2: Buck v. Bell

Welcome to the American Catholic Daily Reader Podcast. Today is May 2nd, and our story is Buck v. Bell. Years before Hitler rose to power with talk of a master race, early 20th century America fell prey to its own eugenics craze. Championed by the likes of Harry Laughlin and Charles Davenport, many of the country's elites started advocating for the forced sterilization of its weakest members, especially the handicapped, believing strict birth control policies held the key to a better tomorrow.

Toward that end, the Commonwealth of Virginia adopted legislation in 1924 that permitted the sterilization of the intellectually disabled. They based the statute on Laughlin's Model Eugenics Law, which he designed to withstand constitutional challenges, and which later served as the template for the Third Reich's eugenics laws.

Almost immediately, a state mental institution put the legislation into practice on 18-year-old Carrie Buck. The institution's board claimed that Buck was a promiscuous imbecile. In truth, Buck had been raped by her foster cousin, become pregnant, and was institutionalized to keep the rape secret.

After her sterilization, the Commonwealth of Virginia challenged the procedure in court, not because it objected, but rather to test the legislation's strength. Because of the collusive nature of the case, including the fact that Buck's lawyer sat on the institution's board, the truth about Buck's situation remains secret.

In 1927, when Buck v. Bell reached the Supreme Court, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. supported the Virginia Statute, writing, It is better for all the world if, instead of waiting to execute degenerate offspring for crime or to let them starve for their imbecility, society can prevent those who are manifestly unfit from continuing their kind. Seven justices sided with Holmes in his May 2, 1927 decision. Only one, Pierce Butler, a Catholic from Minnesota who sat on the court between 1923 and 1939, dissented.

Butler wrote no opinion explaining his vote, which was common then, but his Catholicism was widely blamed. Before issuing the decision, Holmes wrote, I wonder whether Butler will have the Courage to vote with us in spite of his religion. To Butler's credit, he had a different kind of courage. Pierce Butler's silent dissent reminds us that conscience, informed by faith, is a powerful guide, even in the face of overwhelming societal pressure.

His example encourages reflection on the moral challenges we face today, where popular opinion or convenience can conflict with right action. Identify a situation where standing up for truth or life might be countercultural. Pray for courage and clarity to act rightly.

Thank you for listening to the American Catholic Daily Reader podcast. Join us tomorrow, May 3rd, for another story of faith and courage in America.