Would you take $315 to be sterilized? Well, if you’re a drug addict and you live in the United Kingdom, you can. Project Prevention, a North Carolina–based charity, is offering £200 ($315) to any man who agrees to be sterilized.
Project Prevention founder Barbara Harris admitted her methods amounted to “bribery,” but said it was the only way to stop babies being physically and mentally damaged by drugs during pregnancy.
Apparently, Harris has already paid over 3,500 addicts in the United States for what she calls “long-term birth control.” She set up the organization after adopting the child of a crack addict.
Um, isn’t this eugenics? The idea smacks of self-righteousness, like all drug addicts are some kind of lost cause. At the same time, it’s encouraging drug addicts to continue being drug addicts. Their recovery is a nonissue when they can be tossed cash and forgotten about.
Project Prevention is merely sweeping a monumental problem under a fancy rug.
Though they are being paid, addicts think of nothing more than when they will be high next. If the dealer said to them i will hand you a $300 rock that will sterilize you… they wouldnt think twice. So whats the difference if a charity does it or not. Its not a matter of deeming a parent worthy, it’s preventing the degradation of our population, prventing the extroardinarily diffuclt life of disabled peoples; and spending the taxes of individuals not running the streets, doing drugs, and popping out babies for the system to handle. What gives a drug addict the… Read more »
The program is a great idea. keep in mind, the program is only part of the solution. While treating an addict, don’t give them the chance to ruin a baby’s life, likely will not stop at just one baby either. I think most people criticize the program from afar. As soon as you see the problem up close, you realize that stronger action than drug counseling is needed. The other option to the program seems to be lots and lots of welfare checks, CPS calls, and Medicare/Medicaid financial drains. I hope that people realize what a great program this is,… Read more »
As the adult offspring of hard-core addicts – heroin, cocaine, and meth, specifically – I totally support and encourage this voluntary option. Nothing about this idea is forced. Many of the above commentators have mentioned “helping” the addicts with the “medical problem” of addiction. Addiction is a personal choice. But that’s really beside the point, isn’t it? This idea has absolutely nothing to do with helping the addicts themselves. This is to help society as a whole – and to prevent a few more babies from being born to self-absorbed moron parents who have no interest or ability to take… Read more »
Ryan, I’m not sure how you got this article printed, seeing as you have several blatant errors in it. One, the PP founder adopted 5 drug-addicted babies, several from THE SAME MOM, not one. Two, PP OFFERS sterilizations AND long-term BC options, to men AND women, and yes they offer financial compensation as inducement. So how is making a choice the same as eugenics? i’ve been sterilized, in fact I paid a lot of money for it after my last baby. Am I a victim of eugenics? Are all other users of norplant and IUD’s victims? If you can’t trust… Read more »
I’ve blogged this here: http://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2010/10/21/boohoo_for_the.html
You;’re a raging idiot and everything that’s wrong with this world. Why don’t you just die already and go to your ‘heaven’ where your ‘god’ will tell you whatever it is that you thought up in your own head for an afterlife!
Well, first of all, because I’m a godless harlot.
Maybe work on the civil debate thing, Sheena?
“Drug addict” is a description of a temporary set of behaviors. It is not an identity. Consider sterilizing every musician who’s been a drug addict at some point in their life – still support it? (Now I’ll grant that you may have a case with Courtney and Kurt, but still…) Why not something temporary – no kids as long as you’re using? Why permanent? And why would anyone assume that a ‘drug addict’ is mentally, emotionally, and legally capable of sensibly making such a long-term decision? Would you accept such choices yourself if the hospital gave you a bunch of… Read more »
“Consider sterilizing every musician who’s been a drug addict at some point in their life – still support it?”
Um, nobody’s advocating forced sterilization.
“And why would anyone assume that a ‘drug addict’ is mentally, emotionally, and legally capable of sensibly making such a long-term decision?”
By all means, let’s have somebody who isn’t raise another human being.
If they CHOOSE it, yes! Keep your laws off their body, right!?
And, again, long-term BC IS offered by PP. Thanks for the mis-info, Ryan!
Chainsaw…….HOw many drug addicts do you know? And how many have recovered??? By your definition its a temporary state. But Ive seen more people die from using, go to jail and come back out to immediately use, go to program after program and work them so they get out of jail time, just to go back to doing meth as soon as humanly possible. Ive seen some quit for a few months because of children….then start right up again. Obviously you didn’t grow up in a drug broken home like I did so you couldn’t truelyunderstand, but if you could… Read more »
I’m with you, Lee. I’d prefer to exist, too.
I inherited genes that contributed to addiction. I’ve probably passed them on to my children, too.
And yet we thrive.
Personally, I find this sterilization-for-money program offensive, and morally wrong. I think a reductive program designed to purchase a basic human right (and I think most reasonable people would agree that reproduction is as basic as it gets) from a vulnerable population who are found to be undesirable by other elements of society… is fucking awful.
Co-sign!
WHY should fucking up kids be a basic human right? Do the KIDS have no basic human rights? No one cares if they inherit a gene-this is about not making innocent babies suffer horrible consequences for their irresponsible parents decisions. Period.
momof4: Your question is “why” is it a basic human right? Well, you’re a parent, right? Think about it. If “fucking up kids” wasn’t a basic human right, nobody would have kids. Nobody can foresee all outcomes, can they? Certainty like yours implies an amazing insight into the future, especially other people’s futures. Can you bend these powers to anticipate the lives and relative suffering and lifetime outcomes of all babies born, or just those of addicted parents? Can you foresee with the same certainty even that of your own? I surely can’t of mine. I suppose, were I able… Read more »
Nice find, Ryan. Controversy is so fun to blog about! I’ve personally experienced the inheritance of the “alcoholic gene” from grandfather-father-me. Personally, I would rather exist than not. But if people are given some kind of incentive NOT to pro-create, there is something else, perhaps subconscious, behind the decision. Or maybe the decision is ruled by the impulse for a quick fix/reward. Whatever. I still believe that people have the POWER and WILL to make decisions. And although I would never create this incentive for people, those who do will reap the karmic consequences for doing so. Nothing that we… Read more »
I’m a left leaning, casual drug user (coke, mdma, etc). And just because of that, do not think that I disagree with this.
If you’re deep enough in the game that $350 is worth getting your tubes tied forever, then effin do it. By simply participating that just means you have no drive to be a functional member of society. I feel like when it comes to drug use, the moment something like this becomes a good idea to the user is the moment it becomes a viable option for the rest of society.
You have no idea what it’s like to go from “casual drug user” to full-blown addict. When you get there, though, you will realize that anything for money sounds like a good idea and all that matters is getting that next hit. It is total despair and you have lost the ability to think about anything but that next hit. Do you understand this? There is no “[it] becomes a good idea to the user” because ANYTHING is a good idea when it gets you to your next hit. This is equivalent to offering someone who is choking the Heimlich… Read more »
“There is no “[it] becomes a good idea to the user” because ANYTHING is a good idea when it gets you to your next hit.”
You keep pointing out exactly why addicts should have no kids.
I am way late to this convo, but I have to say whenever I hear about drugs I don’t think about sterilizing the user but dealing with the larger problem at stake. The entire country of Mexico is at war with itself over the demand created by US drug users. And in our cities young men grow up learning that drug dealing (and jail) are the only real option. To me the answer is simple: legalize pretty much all drugs and deal directly with addiction. For god sakes don’t sterilize anyone.
Seems in your hurry to make yourself heard you didnt bother to read – the program is VOLLENTARY
Well, this is similar to asking the poets and great lovers of the world not breed. For my money, “addiction” and creativity go hand and hand.
I think I’ll start a fund for South Carolina “Christians” not to breed, because:
-Fundamentalists are dumb (see above)
-We need to breed out unimaginative people
-Jiingoists and ignoramuses brought you the Iraq War
-Even when Christians are nice, they take orders from spittal mouthed evangelists with blonde sprayed pompadors
-Well, you get the idea
Go for it. We’re still a free country, you can start whatever VOLUNTARY program you like.
loved this. almost wrote about it for Babble, but figured it probably wasn’t “parenty” enough. couldn’t agree w/ your take any more. what a weird story, no? WELL DONE!
I would totally fly over to the UK and claim I was addicted to everything just so I can get a vasectomy. It’ll cost me around $1,000 in the US to get one, but I’ll actually get paid if I do it this way lol.
You don’t have to fly over there. It’s a US nonprofit, you can do it here too.
People keep saying that this isn’t going to “fix the problem of addiction, it’s not helping the addict properly, or giving them the help they need etc, etc”. I don’t think the goal of this program is to help the addict… it’s to help the rest of society by decreasing overpopulation, unwanted pregnancies, drug-addicted babies, parentless children, and so on.
I’d like to know who’s financing Barbara.
They obviously have something to gain by manipulating the population.
I’d like to know whos finacing you? You get a government check for warehouse the children of addicts? Do you have a finacial incentive for propogating the propogation of addicts?
india did something similiar.. started with the best intentions, and then spiralled into a method of control for classes and political alliances due to the emerging democracy
May God have mercy on each of your soulless bodies.
There isno god, sorry to disappoint, welcome to reality
I rathe think the addicts will be needing his mercy for what they do to his children.
Seems sexist actually. Drug addicted babies come from drug addicted mothers.
I’m pretty sure there’s no such thing as immaculate conception.
Actually, if Ryan were better at his job, we’d all know that PP offers both men AND women the CHOICE to receive money in exchange for EITHER getting sterilized OR using longterm BC.
Ill add my 2c. This might be something that falls under the headline of eugenics, but no more so then say they hypothetical where parents can control the genetic content of their children. Distributed programs like this one are generally considered ok because the decisions are ostensibly being made by the participants involved — namely the parents. That being said, it sees likely that there is a fair degree of coercion involved here — while to many good folk $315 seems an inconsequential payment, especially in reference to a child, it is offering that fee when a person is at… Read more »
So far the only legal medical sterilazation option for men are vacetomies, which are REVERSIBLE.
Imagine a world free of drug addicted babies, a world free of non drug adicted babies being taken away from drug addicted parents – a world where all that tax moeny could be used to fund treatment programs.
Just to be clear it wrong, WRONG, to give an addict moeny to get a vasectomy, but if perfectly fine to gve that same addict a baby?
One more good idea why don’t we just sterilize all the men and give the $315.00 directly to the drug dealers! Where do you think the money is going to go UMMM!
I’m going to side with Jennifer and Steven here. Vilifying the poor is not a humane solution. I’ll buy the “it’s their decision” argument when contraception and abortion are affordable and accessible alternatives in communities with high addiction rates. Then we’ll see who jumps for a voluntary sterilization.
They give out condoms for free in most places. And they obviously have enough money to by drugs at a wildly inflated price so they aint that poor.
No one is villifying the poor. We are saying people WHO USE DRUGS SHOULD NOT BE PARENTS, and bravo to this organization for giving them control over their own bodies.
Hitler was a bad person. Hitler engaged in eugenics. This doesn’t mean that all selective reproduction programs are bad. This seems like a wonderful charity. Being raised by drug addicts is not a good thing. We do not need more human population. I don’t see any concrete reason why this would be bad. Most long-term birth control can be reversed if the drug addict recovers and becomes financial stable enough to afford a surgery (which is a fraction of the cost of raising a child properly). I agree that there may be better solutions. If there are, go out and… Read more »
Hitler did not engage in eugentics – the Nazis had plans to try eugenic after the war was over. During the war they engaged in genocide.
If murder is part of the equastion then it isnt eugenics.
Why not sterilize the women too? Another misandrist endeavor.
Wonder,
They do offer it to women as well. The narrow focus was Ryan’s alone. HE is the one who decided to only present one side of this. The only misandry in this one, is from Ryan.
This is the worst program I ever heard of! I’m a person in recover myself and i can’t believe this is even legal. Praying on people who can’t make decision for themselves! I agree with Ryan on this HOW ABOUT DEALING WITH THE PROBLEM?
Guess what steven: these people are all grown up. They could also choose to get help – there are plenty of programs available. You’re in recovery? Good for you. Tell me: when you were tripped out, just how good a parent would you have been?
People are responsible for their own choices. If they choose to remain addicts, the last thing we need is for them to have kids that cannot and will not care for.
Preying on people who can’t make their own decisions??? Yet they SHOULD HAVE BABIES? You’re an idiot. YOU made the decision to use, and some people at least are making the decision to be sterilized. Good for them for doing one thing right in their life. There is no reason I or anyone else should pay for “treatment” for your decision to use drugs. Period. Grow up and own your own life, bud. The excuses are growing old.
This is a prime example of a “self-selecting audience”. The people willing to undergo sterilization for $315 are exactly those people who should not be having babies. Another example of self-selecting audience: those who get themselves killed doing stupid things, who also remove themselves from the gene pool. This takes a big social problem and reduces it gradually, with minimal pain to those affected. Drug abuse hurts everybody involved – why not reduce the number of lives destroyed in its wake? And this program has almost no effect on other programs aiming to help the addicts themselves – $315 is… Read more »
Agreed.
“The people willing to undergo sterilization for $315 are exactly those people who should not be having babies.”
Absolutely!