Hudson Library will host author Karen Zacharias, Wednesday, March 6 at 4 p.m. to discuss her book “No Perfect Mothers,” which personalizes the story of Carrie Buck, the center of the Buck v. Bell U.S. Supreme Court Case examining eugenics and the forced sterilization of women.
Zacharias traced the inspiration for “No Perfect Mothers” to a news article where she read about 2020 ICE detainees who had been sterilized by an OBGYN without their consent. Researching that issue further brought her to the topic of forced sterilization and its role in shadowy corners of U.S. history.
“No Perfect Mothers” relies on books published on the Buck v. Bell case as well as personal writings of Buck herself and interviews in her old age, which helped Zacharias connect to the person behind the story.
Zacharias’ story takes real names and facts of the Buck v. Bell case and personalizes them through a fictionalized lens, such as the addition of Miss Mora, a guardian figure to Buck in Zacharias’ novel.
“It was a matter of bringing back that emotional context to her story and actually giving voice to Carrie,” Zacharias said.
In the 1920s, Buck was sexually assaulted when she was 17 by her adoptive mother’s nephew. She became pregnant as a result and was subsequently exploited, being committed to an institution by her family and then sterilized.
Buck carried the first child, but the child was adopted after Buck was determined to be too mentally unwell to raise the child. Buck was then sterilized to prevent her having further children without her consent due to her alleged mental faculties.
Albert Sidney, superintendent of the Virginia State Colony for Epileptics and Feebleminded, sought to have Buck sterilized when she was 18. Sidney claimed Buck had a mental age of nine. Buck v. Bell enshrined the rights for states to tell women when they cannot have children. Zacharias said there are still 31 states that legally allow for compulsory sterilization of people with disabilities.
Zacharias said one confounding principle to her was that there are two seemingly disparaging laws regarding women’s reproductive rights.
“I want people to think about what it means to live in a society where we have two laws on the books, both of them Supreme Court decisions right now,” she said, also referring to the Dobbs v. Jackson case.
The Supreme Court cited Dobbs v. Jackson as they overthrew Roe v. Wade. Dobbs v. Jackson conferred the decision on abortions to the state level.
“They leave that decision up to state lawmakers, mostly men,” Zacharias said.
Zacharias studied at Oregon State University, receiving degrees in education and communication. She has worked as a journalist, magazine writer, and now as an author. “No Perfect Mothers” is her tenth published book. It will be available for purchase at her talk at the Hudson Library. Zacharias will also be available for questions and signings.