Another term for eugenics; the belief or practice that human populations can be improved through selective breeding or genetic control.
From eugenic plus the suffix -ism, forming an alternative noun for the movement and philosophy of eugenics, less commonly used than eugenics itself.
'Eugenism' is basically an older or more formal alternative to 'eugenics'—you'll see it in historical texts, but scientists today use 'eugenics' when discussing the movement and 'genetic counseling' when describing modern medical practices.
Eugenism as an ideology positioned women as reproducers whose bodies and choices should be controlled 'for the improvement of the race.' This gendered control was central to eugenicist projects from the 1890s onward.
Use only in critical historical or scientific contexts. Frame as an ideology of control that targeted women's autonomy and bodily integrity.
["hereditarian ideology","genetic determinism (critical)"]
Reproductive justice frameworks have explicitly centered how eugenism has been weaponized against marginalized women and built counter-narratives of autonomy and collective liberation.
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