Letter to Henrietta Lacks
To the dearly missed, Henrietta Lacks,
Although you are no longer with us, your cells continue to grow and flourish across the globe, saving millions of lives each year. I would like to apologize on behalf of those who thought of you as a number, those who thought of you as another culture on a dish, and those who thought of you as just another helpless black patient at Johns Hopkins hospital to be taken advantage of. I agree that this whole process was not the correct way to approach your situation. Cultures should not have been taken from you without detailed consent. But, I think that if you had known what your cells could accomplish, you would have agreed to the terms anyways. As your family told Rebecca Skloot in an interview, you were a very giving, loving, and humble person who would have helped anyone else before herself. I have to give you the most credit not only on what you have done for society, but for your strength as an African American woman who went through the toughest of times, almost alone. Your strength and humbleness amaze me and are seen as others as beyond belief. To go through the amount of cancer and radiation that you had, and to take care of all of your family members as if nothing was wrong, I, along with many others consider you an honorable hero. Your HeLa cell line has allowed scientists all over the world to discover a vaccine for polio and to be used in all different types of research for experimentation in all areas of science. Even though this may be difficult to understand, you should know that because of you, millions of people have had another chance at life, and with your cells, these accomplishments can only continue.
After your death at Johns Hopkins hospital, your family had not known what had happened or what was about to happen with the mass production of your everlasting cells. It was difficult for them to understand everything that took place, and it was difficult for them to cope with you no longer by their sides. They managed to get through this will the help of respectable doctors and Rebecca Skloot, who I will be glad to introduce to you soon. What struck me the most was your daughter Deborah’s determination to find out who you were as a person and not the meaning of your immortal cells. All she wanted was to know who her mother had been, which I thought was unique considering the rest of the family who wanted compensation for your wonderful donations. Although, I do think that your family should receive compensation for what you have donated to the medical world. As time goes on, you definitely deserve more and more recognition as a person, than you have been given in the past. People, including myself, are working hard to make sure that your name is known and will continue to be known. Rebecca Skloot, the author of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks has written a novel about your life. She describes the most important scenes of your life, your family’s reactions to these events that take place, the details of the scientific aspect during the time you were alive, and your bravery throughout this whole process. Rebecca Skloot allows the reader to understand your position through this bioethics war and shows your innocence and heroicness along the way. I would just like to thank you for everything that you have done for the world we live in today and tell you that the inhabitants of the world appreciate your donation to the world of science.
Sincerely,
Katie Chaplin
Although you are no longer with us, your cells continue to grow and flourish across the globe, saving millions of lives each year. I would like to apologize on behalf of those who thought of you as a number, those who thought of you as another culture on a dish, and those who thought of you as just another helpless black patient at Johns Hopkins hospital to be taken advantage of. I agree that this whole process was not the correct way to approach your situation. Cultures should not have been taken from you without detailed consent. But, I think that if you had known what your cells could accomplish, you would have agreed to the terms anyways. As your family told Rebecca Skloot in an interview, you were a very giving, loving, and humble person who would have helped anyone else before herself. I have to give you the most credit not only on what you have done for society, but for your strength as an African American woman who went through the toughest of times, almost alone. Your strength and humbleness amaze me and are seen as others as beyond belief. To go through the amount of cancer and radiation that you had, and to take care of all of your family members as if nothing was wrong, I, along with many others consider you an honorable hero. Your HeLa cell line has allowed scientists all over the world to discover a vaccine for polio and to be used in all different types of research for experimentation in all areas of science. Even though this may be difficult to understand, you should know that because of you, millions of people have had another chance at life, and with your cells, these accomplishments can only continue.
After your death at Johns Hopkins hospital, your family had not known what had happened or what was about to happen with the mass production of your everlasting cells. It was difficult for them to understand everything that took place, and it was difficult for them to cope with you no longer by their sides. They managed to get through this will the help of respectable doctors and Rebecca Skloot, who I will be glad to introduce to you soon. What struck me the most was your daughter Deborah’s determination to find out who you were as a person and not the meaning of your immortal cells. All she wanted was to know who her mother had been, which I thought was unique considering the rest of the family who wanted compensation for your wonderful donations. Although, I do think that your family should receive compensation for what you have donated to the medical world. As time goes on, you definitely deserve more and more recognition as a person, than you have been given in the past. People, including myself, are working hard to make sure that your name is known and will continue to be known. Rebecca Skloot, the author of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks has written a novel about your life. She describes the most important scenes of your life, your family’s reactions to these events that take place, the details of the scientific aspect during the time you were alive, and your bravery throughout this whole process. Rebecca Skloot allows the reader to understand your position through this bioethics war and shows your innocence and heroicness along the way. I would just like to thank you for everything that you have done for the world we live in today and tell you that the inhabitants of the world appreciate your donation to the world of science.
Sincerely,
Katie Chaplin
