Henrietta Lacks

Henrietta Lacks was a woman who was incredibly significant to the field of medical research and it's a substantial shame that most people don't recognize her name. I myself might have very likely never heard of her if it wasn't for the fact that a new acquaintance of mine brought her to my attention. This new friend I made mentioned reading a book about the woman titled The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Obviously I wasn't able to both acquire and read the book in the short time that I became aware of the subject, but I did have enough time to look into Henrietta Lacks and was able to get a good grasp on why she is so significant. Henrietta Lacks grew up in Virginia and ended up moving to Maryland, and while I still don't know a whole lot about her own personal life, I know how the lives of countless others were both improved and saved because of hers. After Henrietta's fifth child, she discovered that she had cancer and ended up dying in Johns Hopkins, however that was not the end of her involvement in this world because something phenomenal was found within her. From the cancer cells that were taken, without her consent which I'll talk about later in this entry, a very unique strain of "immortal" cells were found. In this context, immortal is referring to the fact that the cells didn't die off after a certain number of cell divisions, as is the case with other strains. The hospital was able to keep and research those cells which were dubbed "HeLa" cells, obviously referring to the woman they were taken from. From those cells many medical accomplishments were achieved, including the ability to develop a polio vaccine, the first cloning of human cells, as well as many others. With all of this amazing progress that came about because of this one woman, you would think she would get quite a bit of recognition, but sadly, that wasn't the case, at least not for a long time and not nearly as much as she deserved. Henrietta Lacks, an African American woman, was buried in an unmarked grave on the land of former slave owners and didn't even get a headstone until 2010. Her case in and of itself is tragic, but what makes it worse is that it's far from unique. From my studies and appreciation of literature, art, history, and music, I'm painfully aware of the ugly truth that the cultural and scientific contributions of African Americans have largely been swept under the rug of history for many, many years because of societal prejudice and bigotry. Most people know of Elvis Presley, not nearly as many know of Chuck Berry or Little Richard. Any fan of literature could tell you about Mark Twain, yet substantially fewer could tell you of Charles W. Chestnutt. The same is true of Henrietta Lacks. The contribution of her biology is largely unknown yet I don't doubt that there are countless accomplishments from Caucasian individuals in the medical field that are. This is both tragic and purposeful, and it's a wrong that we are still trying to correct to this day. Even in my lifetime, a supposed enlightened era, I've encountered individuals who firmly believe that African Americans have contributed little if anything to the world. I'm aware of people who have deemed the entire culture as inferior due to a few factors, one of which is the aforementioned historical diminishment and neglect to acknowledge African American contributions to society, but that certainly isn't the only factor. The other primary factor is just as significant and arguably more so because it is also the reason that I believe these individuals don't deserve sympathy. The other primary factor to the aforementioned misguided worldview is that these individuals simply refuse to look at what has been uncovered. Those with racist inclinations are so adamant that they're correct that they won't even give the slightest chance to evidence that may prove them wrong, and that's a huge problem with our society. If you've read any of my writings before, you might be wondering when I'm going to throw in the silver lining that I usually try to establish, well here it is. While the societal diminishment of the contributions of African Americans as well as most other racial minorities is a huge problem, there are many working tirelessly to correct it. Historians of all walks of life are aware of this great disservice and have made it their focus to uncover what's been hidden. Some personal experiences I've had that are a testiment to this are the fact that I've had many sections of college courses that were dedicated to the works of minorities, which is why I'm aware of Charles W. Chestnutt as well as many others in the first place. Changes are happening, but they will be for naught if we don't collectively continue to remind ourselves that there is much work yet to be done. The mistakes of the past are grand and numerous, so approaching their correction with the mindset of awareness of this fact is crucial for any progress. Lest we not forget that, for the sake of Henrietta Lacks and countless others who may be tragically lost to historical obscurity.