Episode Details

This week on The Next Take Podcast, Canada’s own Mikel and Tanyka explore the story of Anarcha Westcott as part of their Third Annual Black History Month series, highlighting her place in medical history and the legacy surrounding her story.

Anarcha Westcott was an enslaved Black woman whose suffering and resilience became deeply connected to the development of modern gynecology in the United States. In the 1840s, after experiencing severe complications from childbirth, Anarcha was subjected to repeated experimental surgeries by physician J. Marion Sims in Montgomery, Alabama. Historical accounts indicate that she underwent at least 30 operations as Sims attempted to develop a successful treatment for obstetric fistulas. These procedures were performed within the oppressive system of slavery, where Anarcha and other enslaved women could not freely provide meaningful consent. For generations, medical history largely celebrated Sims while giving far less recognition to Anarcha and other women—including Lucy and Betsey—whose bodies and experiences contributed to those medical advances. Today, scholars, artists, and activists have worked to restore these women to the historical record and recognize them as significant figures in the history of women's health, medical ethics, and racial injustice. (Via Source: PubMED - View the article on PubMed )

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Episode Produced By: Tanyka

Uploaded By: Mikel Miles

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