Taking Down Statues

Abstract

In 2018, demands to remove a statue of James Marion Sims -the inventor of the vaginal speculum and a number of revolutionary surgical techniques -continue a recent trend that has seen a re-evaluation of the legacy of the man known as the "father of gynecology" as well as other historical figures. His innovations, which revolutionized women's surgical care, came as the result of horrific experimentation on slave women. Despite the availability of anaesthetic agents, he used none during his experiments. One of his subjects was operated on thirty times. Beginning in the late 20th century, revisionist historians started to draw attention to his unethical and inhumane experiments and have begun to view him not as a medical pioneer but as an oppressor. However, in textbooks as well as in the academic literature, the medical community continues to hold a predominantly positive and uncritical view of Sims and his experiments. In this paper, a brief history of Sims' surgical experiments and contributions to gynecology is described. His surgical legacy is discussed, and contemporaneous and modern reactions to his experiments are compared. Finally, a brief discussion of the relevance of historical mistreatment on the healthcare of vulnerable populations is provided.