By Aswad Walker
(Source Texas Metro News):
Descendants of the ‘Tuskegee Experiment’
Descendants of the ‘Tuskegee Experiment’ will now be eligible for scholarships made available by the CDC Foundation in an attempt to right past wrongs. This 1950’s photo shows men included in the ‘Tuskegee Experiment.’ National Archives via AP.
The CDC Foundation recently announced a new endowed scholarship program, Voices Today for Change Tomorrow, for descendants of the Black men who were part of the CDC-led U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Study of Untreated Syphilis at Tuskegee and Macon County, AL, 1932–1972.
The study, known most commonly as the “Tuskegee Experiment,” represents one of the most well-known, large-scale medical ethics violations in U.S. history, and possibly world history.
As part of the new scholarship program, the CDC Foundation seeks to raise a $5 million endowment to support the current Voices For Our Fathers Legacy Foundation scholarships, which will grow to provide $100,000 in merit scholarships annually to the study’s descendants. To help meet the funding goal for the scholarship program, the CDC Foundation is announcing a $1 million lead gift by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).
“By Making A Commitment To Honor The Legacy Of These Men, We Are Working To Provide A Stronger Foundation Of Support For The Next Generation To Build Change. These Scholarships Are Intended To Amplify The Voices Of The Next Generation, Allowing Them To Honor The Life Experiences Of Their Ancestors While Pursuing Innovative Solutions Across Their Fields Of Study.” DR. JUDY MONROE
The “Tuskegee Experiment” involved 625 Black men who were denied treatment for syphilis while being observed as their illness progressed. Whistleblowers brought an end to the unethical study in 1972, eventually prompting the development of what we know today as “modern medical ethics.” However, the lives of “experiment” participants and many of their family members were devastated. Many Black men died from complications of syphilis, while several of their wives and children contracted the disease.
Beyond those devastatingly negative impacts was the mistrust in the US medical system embedded in Blacks nationally as the study was made known. National Institutes of Health (NIH) estimates imply that “the Tuskegee Study disclosure contributed to widening health disparities between 1970 and 1980, accounting for approximately 35% of the 1980 life expectancy gap between Black and white men and 25% of the gap between Black men and women.”
In a word, this distrust in the medical community led to worse health outcomes for Blacks.
In recognition of the gravity of the 50th anniversary (Nov. 2022) of the end of that study, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) collaborated with Voices For Our Fathers Legacy Foundation, renowned historians, and senior government officials to present Recognition, Remembrance, and Reflection: The Untreated Syphilis Study at Tuskegee and Macon County. The 50th anniversary event underscored the need to build a better future, upholding the parting requests of the unwilling study participants: to always remember and never repeat.
According to a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) news release, “CDC and the CDC Foundation are dedicated to honoring the memories of the men in the study as well their lives.”
“By making a commitment to honor the legacy of these men, we are working to provide a stronger foundation of support for the next generation to build change,” said Judy Monroe, MD, president and CEO of the CDC Foundation. “These scholarships are intended to amplify the voices of the next generation, allowing them to honor the life experiences of their ancestors while pursuing innovative solutions across their fields of study.”
For the scholarship program, the CDC Foundation is partnering with Voices For Our Fathers Legacy Foundation (VFOF), a nonprofit membership organization comprised of the descendants of the individuals in the study. VFOF works to remind the world of the people and communities profoundly affected by the “Tuskegee Experiment.”
“Descendants of the 625 African American men dehumanized and unethically treated for 40 years are moving forward with generational healing, working to bring good from the United States Public Health Service Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male. Our purpose is to transform the legacy of the longest-lasting, non-therapeutic study in U.S. medical history from shame and trauma to honor and triumph,” said Lillie Head, president, VFOF. “We believe this scholarship endowment fund and partnership demonstrate a new and lasting commitment to improving a health care system that provides everyone fair and equal medical care regardless of their racial and social status. We have enormous gratitude for the support for the annual scholarships for future generations of descendants.”
“This scholarship is a step toward correcting an inexcusable violation of medical ethics,” CDC Director Mandy Cohen said. “It seeks to uplift the descendants of the Untreated Syphilis Study at Tuskegee and takes steps toward rectifying a difficult part of our public health history.”
In addition to providing annual scholarships to descendants, the fund will provide administrative support as needed for the VFOF and the scholarship program. Recipients of the merit-based scholarships will be encouraged, but not required, to attend a historically Black college or university (HBCU).
For information on how to support this effort contact herenberg@cdcfoundation.org or visit www.cdcfoundation.org/voices-scholarship.
