Blog #3

Story telling has been around since the beginning of time. Before the written word there was oral story telling. From one generation to the next stories from the past have been told and retold. So the fact that someone besides the "main character" of a story is the one to tell the story is not new. Sometimes there are better suited people, those with the gift of telling a story in such a way that will make an impact. In The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks  we are told of how hard Deborah Lacks tried to get the word/story out of her mother's contribution to science but with no avail. There were many factors that would have contributed to the fact that she alone was not able to get the recognition she so greatly wanted. One reason might have been that she did not know who to tell. She was passing flyers around her neighborhood where most people are so occupied with their daily struggles no one would care enough about Henrietta Lacks and her cells. Another reason is that no one she spoke to besides Rebecca Skloot cared about Henrietta Lacks as a person not just as a the source of the cells that they might be using or a cash source.

The right to reap the benefits of the book should be shared. It took a lot of time and hard work on Rebecca Skloot's part to get this work out. She does deserve some of the benefits associated with the book. But the family does also. Without the cooperation of Deborah Lacks, Rebecca Skloot would have a very weak story to tell. The story of Henrietta Lacks cannot be told without those who knew her the most; her family. Deborah is, I believe, entitled to some of the benefits, even though she says multiple times that she just wants people to know who Henrietta Lacks was.

As for the race of the person writing the book, it is hard to tell. In our present day society we know that some racism still exists. I hope that this is changing and will continue to change but there are places where anyone who has a good story to tell will be heard. Henrietta Lacks was a mystery to many and even though others before Rebbeca Skloot have tried to tell the story, she was able to get it to the right people and get it publicized to those who would care. So in a way who cares what Rebbeca Skloots race is, she was able to do what others couldn't.