Eugenically

/juːˈdʒɛnɪkli/ adverb

Definition

In a manner relating to or based on eugenic principles; with respect to hereditary improvement or genetic selection.

Etymology

From eugenic plus the adverbial suffix -ally, forming an adverb that describes how something is done according to eugenic ideas or methods.

Kelly Says

When historians read phrases like 'eugenically motivated' in old documents, they're reading some of the darkest chapters of 20th-century history—it's become almost a code word for systematic discrimination disguised as science.

Ethical Language Guidance

Gender History

Eugenic practices were applied disproportionately to women—forced sterilizations, reproductive surveillance, and criminalization of 'unfit' motherhood were justified eugenically. Women were not agents but objects of eugenic programs.

Inclusive Usage

Avoid. If historical analysis required, center the denied agency and autonomy of women and marginalized groups.

Inclusive Alternatives

["on genetic grounds (neutral)","in the name of genetic improvement (critical framing)"]

Empowerment Note

Disabled women and women of color have led intersectional reproductive justice work that explicitly rejects eugenical thinking and asserts full bodily autonomy.

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