"The "champion of birth control" and the "patron saint of feminism" was no less horrific in her disdain for the helpless and the hapless than any of the other monsters of progressivism during the first half of the twentieth century-Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, and Mao. The only difference is that they have all been duly discredited, while she has not-at least, not yet" -George Grant (p. 90)

In 1933, Margaret's magazine, 'The Birth Control Review', published a shocking article entitled "Eugenic Sterilization: An Urgent Need." It was writtten by Margaret's close friend and advisor, Ernst Rudin, who was then serving as Hitler's director of genetic sterilization and had earlier taken a prominent role in the establishment of the Nazi Society for Racial Hygiene. Later that same year it published an article by Leon Whitney entitled "Selective Sterilization," which adamantly praised and defended the Third Reich's preholocaust "race purification” programs (pp. 86-87).

"The most merciful thing a large family can do to one of its infant members is to kill it" -Margaret Sanger (from her book: Women and the New Race)

In her book The Pivot of Civilization, Margaret called for the elimination of "human weeds", "the cessation of charity, "segregation of morons, misfits, maladjusted" and the sterilization of "genetically inferior races" (p.81).

"My criticism, therefore, is not directed at the failure of philanthropy, but rather at its success. These dangers inherent in the very idea of humanitarianism and altruism, dangers which have today produced their full harvest of human waste" -Margaret Sanger from The Pivot of Civilization (p. 82)

The first issue of her publication 'The Woman Rebel' denounced marriage as "a degenerate institution," capitalism as "indecent exploitation," and sexual modesty as "obscene prudery." In the next issue, an article entitled "A Woman's Duty" proclaimed that "rebel women" were to "look the whole world in the face with a go-to-hell look in the eyes." Another article asserted that "Rebel women claim the following rights: the right to be lazy, the right to be an unmarried mother, the right to destroy . . . and the right to love." In later issues, she published several articles on contraception, several more on sexual liberation, three on the necessity for social revolution, and two defending political assassinations (p. 63).

In 1939 Margaret designed a "Negro Project" in response to requests from "southern state public health officials" men not generally known for their racial equanimity. "The mass of Negroes," her project proposal asserted, "particularly in the South, still breed carelessly and disastrously, with the result that the increase among Negroes, even more than among Whites, is from that portion of the population least intelligent and fit." The proposal went on to say that "Public Health statistics merely hint at the primitive state of civilization in which most Negroes in the South live" (p.88).

In order to remedy this "dysgenic horror story," her project aimed to hire three or four "Colored Ministers, preferably with social-service backgrounds, and with engaging personalities," to travel to various Black enclaves and propagandize for birth control (p.88)

"The most successful educational approach to the Negro," Margaret wrote sometime later, "is through a religious appeal. We do not want word to go out that we want to exterminate the Negro population" (p.88). The strategy was, of course, racial and not geographical...the proportion of minorities in a community was closely related to the density of birth control clinics (p. 89).

Very good, though sad, book. Shocking, but certainly something that should be known. Of course there's quite a bit of mature content to this, but none of it goes into details of the acts themselves.

read for history of medicine

yes, margaret sanger and the birth control movement used eugenic theories and practices as an integral part of the movement. no, this is not okay and caused irreparable and ineffable destruction.

however, to discredit birth control, abortion access and the mission of planned parenthood based off this is sloppy, my guy - this argument falls under the fallacy of the undistributed middle.

this topic is so much more complex than what is encompassed in this book. also claims to be a "short" biography and glosses over some important facts in favor of sensational details including her husband and affairs and "lascivious and concupiscent behavior" that serve to distract - then makes its terrible argument about planned parenthood at the end. yikes.

Informative book on the founder of Planned Parenthood. Important information.