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Milbank Quarterly, 1990
B etween 1918 and 1 9 2 0 , in response to public fears over the spread of venereal diseases, esp... more B etween 1918 and 1 9 2 0 , in response to public fears over the spread of venereal diseases, especially concern for the health of the soldiers and sailors conscripted to fight in World War I, the government of the United States promoted and paid for the detention of more than 18,000 women suspected of prostitution (Brandt 1985). Under an act of Congress directing the creation of a "ci vilian quarantine and isolation fund," women were held against their will in state-run "reformatories" until it could be determined that they were not infectious. The government's program, while startling in size, is hardly unique in the history of American public health. When chol era struck New York City in 1832, officials rounded up alcoholics, es pecially poor Irishmen, in the belief that the illness arose in part from intemperance. During New York City's polio epidemic of 1916, health officials routinely conducted house-to-house searches and forcibly re moved and quarantined children thought to have the disease (Risse 1988). With AIDS the official response has been remarkably different. So far, the few serious proposals for mass quarantines have failed. The most vocal and visible public health officials, including the former sur geon general of the United States, have championed voluntary mea
Cambridge University Press eBooks, Feb 22, 1991
AIDS is the first public health crisis in America to arise after the mid-century civil rights rev... more AIDS is the first public health crisis in America to arise after the mid-century civil rights revolution. Reflecting the values of the civil rights movement, public health experts have drawn attention to the dangers of discrimination against individuals who are sick or at risk, and generally have expressed a preference for voluntary over compulsory measures to limit the spread of the illness. Remarkably, government officials--judges, legislators, and administrators--have largely acceded to the views of these experts. This perspective indicates a more sophisticated understanding of discrimination issues throughout society; experience with AIDS may itself help to transform and refine ideas about individual rights, especially the constitutional conception of "equal protection under the law."
The Milbank Quarterly, 1990
Milbank Quarterly, 1990
B etween 1918 and 1 9 2 0 , in response to public fears over the spread of venereal diseases, esp... more B etween 1918 and 1 9 2 0 , in response to public fears over the spread of venereal diseases, especially concern for the health of the soldiers and sailors conscripted to fight in World War I, the government of the United States promoted and paid for the detention of more than 18,000 women suspected of prostitution (Brandt 1985). Under an act of Congress directing the creation of a "ci vilian quarantine and isolation fund," women were held against their will in state-run "reformatories" until it could be determined that they were not infectious. The government's program, while startling in size, is hardly unique in the history of American public health. When chol era struck New York City in 1832, officials rounded up alcoholics, es pecially poor Irishmen, in the belief that the illness arose in part from intemperance. During New York City's polio epidemic of 1916, health officials routinely conducted house-to-house searches and forcibly re moved and quarantined children thought to have the disease (Risse 1988). With AIDS the official response has been remarkably different. So far, the few serious proposals for mass quarantines have failed. The most vocal and visible public health officials, including the former sur geon general of the United States, have championed voluntary mea
Cambridge University Press eBooks, Feb 22, 1991
AIDS is the first public health crisis in America to arise after the mid-century civil rights rev... more AIDS is the first public health crisis in America to arise after the mid-century civil rights revolution. Reflecting the values of the civil rights movement, public health experts have drawn attention to the dangers of discrimination against individuals who are sick or at risk, and generally have expressed a preference for voluntary over compulsory measures to limit the spread of the illness. Remarkably, government officials--judges, legislators, and administrators--have largely acceded to the views of these experts. This perspective indicates a more sophisticated understanding of discrimination issues throughout society; experience with AIDS may itself help to transform and refine ideas about individual rights, especially the constitutional conception of "equal protection under the law."
The Milbank Quarterly, 1990