TILoHeLa Blog #3

Antonio Garcia

August 15, 2013 

TILoHeLa Blog #3

What does it mean to be an author, to tell a story? Is the author the authority, or should the subjects have a say in their own lives? In The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot tells the story of Henrietta Lacks writing about experiences in detail that she could neither have known about nor experienced. In the past, particularly in writings from the Anti-Slavery movement, this was a common practice, and was seen as a necessary tactic to combat the evil of slavery. However, we live in a very different world today, so, is this still fair? Or does this kind of book allow privileged outsiders to reap the benefits (this is a highly successful work) of another’s suffering?  Explain whether or not you think this kind authorship is appropriate. If yes, why? What “gives them the right”? If no, why not? Aren’t these stories important? If we didn’t hear them from these White women, would we hear them at all? 

Prior to 1865 slavery had not been abolished in the United States. During this time many pieces pertaining to anti-slavery had been written. The authors felt that writing the accounts of the slaves life’s gave them a voice and others awareness of the injustices that had been done to them. In The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot accounts the story about Henrietta Lacks. The book details the struggle Lacks had in combating cancer and the unfair treatment she had received for being African-American and of low financial status. The book accounted the origin of the famous “HeLa” which contributed to scientific research and eventually help find cures for some diseases such as polio. 

The controversy with the story is that the tissue samples were taken without the knowledge that they would be used for research. Her family where not notified about the research until years later; and remarkably the cells still existed, which was something the family hard a difficult time dealing with. Something that should be examined is that if Skloot had the right to write a book about Lacks, especially since the book was very detailed and personal. Given that many injustices had been done to Lacks and her family, one can argue that Skloot wrote the book with intensions of informing the public of the wrongs that had been done to her, and to pay gratitude for the life she lived.

One can argue that Skloot does not have the right to publish a book about Lacks life given that it is an invasion of privacy however, Lacks family felt that their should be told. Lacks family was generous enough to share their story with the public although that was not always the case. As Skloot first started writing the book she had a difficult time finding back round knowledge about Lacks. When she first came into contact with the Lacks family they were not as open to talk and often shunned her away. The Lacks family through out their entire life’s have always been bombarded with mail and phone calls from researchers. They felt that they were being used, given all the questions about their medical related back rounds. Especially since they do not have proper medical treatment themselves. The researched only pursued what they wanted and gave no condolences to the family. Even as much time has passed no one informed them of what “HeLa” cells were and the research that had been done. Skloot was persistent to understand Lacks story and eventually interviewed the family. The family got to know Skloot and discovered that she genuinely had good intensions. Skloot wanted to understand the pain and their side of the story, something that no one has asked the family. For these reasons the family may have opened up to Lacks and let her publish the story of Henrietta Lacks.