Overview

"During the Cold War, an alliance between American scientists, pharmaceutical companies, and the US military pushed the medical establishment into ethically fraught territory. Doctors and scientists at prestigious institutions were pressured to produce medical advances to compete with the perceived threats coming from the Soviet Union. In Against Their Will, authors Allen Hornblum, Judith Newman, and Gregory Dober reveal the little-known history of unethical and dangerous medical experimentation on children in the United States. Through rare interviews and the personal correspondence of renowned medical investigators, they document how children - both normal and those termed ""feebleminded"" - from infants to teenagers, became human research subjects in terrifying experiments. They were drafted as ""volunteers"" to test vaccines, doused with ringworm, subjected to electric shock, and given lobotomies. They were also fed radioactive isotopes and exposed to chemical warfare agents.This groundbreaking book shows how institutional superintendents influenced by eugenics often turned these children over to scientific researchers without a second thought. Based on years of archival work and numerous interviews with both scientific researchers and former test subjects, this is a fascinating and disturbing look at the dark underbelly of American medical history."

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9780230341715

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Reviews

<p> Uncovers the Cold War alliance between American scientists, pharmaceutical companies, and the US military that pushed the medical establishment into ethically fraught territory. -- Publishers Weekly <p><p><p> Against Their Will is a chilling book that will open your eyes to one of the darkest chapters in our nation's history. Sometimes disturbing, at times appalling, it is the kind of book that keeps you turning pages to find out more. The authors have researched the subject in depth and have done a masterful job documenting what, to most of us, is shocking and unthinkable. Highly recommended. --Andrew Goliszek, author of In The Name of Science <p> Against Their Will is a moving and impressively researched account of science gone awry, and it's full of unjustly forgotten stories from a dark era. It will engross anyone interested in medicine's past, the institutional treatment of children, and the best of investigative writing. -- Jack El-Hai, author of The Lobotomist: A Maverick Medical Genius and His Tragic Quest to Rid the World of Mental Illness <p> <p> The authors of Against Their Will have done an outstanding job in identifying these egregious events and critically reviewing the fascinating, sociopolitical circumstances in which they occurred. This thoroughly researched, highly absorbing book will undoubtedly have a significant positive impact upon medical research in future years. A truly marvelous contribution to patient safety and human dignity by three erudite authors. --Cyril Wecht, MD, author of From Crime Scene to Courtroom <p>

After the Morecambe Bay Hospital scandal a new era opens of compassion, -whistle-blowing, naming names and possible prosecutions. But what about 70-odd years of harming children in 'care' homes, and prisoners, with toxin injections, -radioactive blasts, electro-shocks to the brain and frontal lobotomies - all done in the interests of medical advance by leading American doctors and scientists, one of whom was - awarded a Nobel Prize?... Against Their Will is not about sadists, Nazis or crazies. - The Spectator This book is deeply disturbing, but is something that must be read - The Book Bag

<p> Uncovers the Cold War alliance between American scientists, pharmaceutical companies, and the US military that pushed the medical establishment into ethically fraught territory. -- Publishers Weekly

<p> Uncovers the Cold War alliance between American scientists, pharmaceutical companies, and the US military that pushed the medical establishment into ethically fraught territory. -- Publishers Weekly <p> <p> Against Their Will is a chilling book that will open your eyes to one of the darkest chapters in our nation's history. Sometimes disturbing, at times appalling, it is the kind of book that keeps you turning pages to find out more. The authors have researched the subject in depth and have done a masterful job documenting what, to most of us, is shocking and unthinkable. Highly recommended. --Andrew Goliszek, author of In The Name of Science

Author Information

Allen M. Hornblum is the author of five books, including Acres of Skin and Sentenced to Science. His work has been featured on CBS Evening News, Good Morning America, NPR's Fresh Air, BBC World Service, and The New York Times. He lives in Philadelphia, PA. Judith Lynn Newman is an associate professor of Human Development at Penn State University (Abington). Gregory J. Dober writes on medical issues for organizational newsletters such as Prison Legal News.

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