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an •OOOO^.O^A cv^ ' -■IRUTA’' 1*,?*, i4C 2' .-76'?'^' ,3920 jy^HE2i;^tHliNBR>^EQ^ VOLUME 71 - NUMBERS DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA — SATURDAY, JANUARY 23,1993 TELEPHONE (919) 682-2913 PR1CE:30 CENTS KERMAN SHAW considers himself very lucky to have lived a long and, for the most part, a healthy life. But Shaw, who recently celebrated his 90th birthday anniversary, is especially lucky since fOr 40 years he was one of 400 unwitting participants in a 40-year U.S. Public Health Service experiment in one of the most notorious medical experiments in American history: the Tuskegee Study,of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male. NOVA investigates the story of this infamous human experiment in "The Deadly Deception," airing Tuesday, January 26, at 8 p.m. ET on PBS (WUNC-TV in the Triangle area). ABC News Medical Correspondent George Strait hosts. NOVA is a production of the WGBH Science Unit. (Photo by Mike Clemmer for WGBH) Must See NOVA Looks At Tuskegee SyphtNs Experiment Herman Shaw considers himself very lucky to have lived a long and, for the most part, a healthy life. But Shaw, who recently celebrated his 90th birthday an niversary, is especially lucky since for 40 years he was an unwitting participant in one of the most notorious medical experiments in American history: the Tuskegee Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male. [NOVA investigates the story of this infamous hu man experiment that many believe perverted princi ples of medical ethics and the relationship between patient and doctor and subject and researcher on "The Deadly Deception," presented by George Strait, ABC News Medical Correspondent, Tuesday, January 26, at 8 p.m. ET on PBS-. [Triangle Area: WUNC-TV. Elsewhere: Check Listings.] . . "The Deadly Deception" includes testimony from Shaw and other survivors, and from doctors who ad ministered the Tuskegee Study. Scenes from Miss Evers' Boys, a stage play by David Feldshuh about dilemmas presented by the study, are interspersed bhioughout the film. ” jin the 1920s and ’30s there were US Public Health I Sbrvice (PHS) campaigns nationwide to combat the rising syphilis epidemic. One treatment program was dn Macon County, Alabama, a predopiinandy.poor and African American community. But here the op timism of government dlxtors soon soured, as the jpassive treatment program proved difficult and ex- jpensive. The Macon County treaunent program was abandoned, and one Public Health official decided to spin off from it into a less expensive study to investi gate the course of untreated syphilis. (In a letter to his superiors, Taliaferro Clark, then 'head of the'PHS venereal disease division, writes, iMacon County is a natural laboratory. A ready-made situation... The state of affairs is due to the paucity of doctors, rather low intelligence of the Negro popula tion in this section, depressed economic conditions, and the very conflnon promiscuous sex relations of this population group which not only contribute to the spread of syphilis but also contribute to the prevailing indifference with regard to treatment." ^jln 1932,400 test subjects were lured into the exper iment with promises of free treatment They were never told the true purpose of the study. The "medi cines" they received were worthless against syphilis. President Clinton Summons Nation To Bring America Back to Greatness By John King Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - President Clinton summoned the nation tp help a new generation of leadership "face hard truths and take strong steps," vowing in a hopeful, forceful inaugural address: "We will not shrink from the challenges nor fail to seize the opportunities." In a volatile time, he said: "We must be bold." Clinton offered his first words as president just moments after his swearing in as the nation’s 42nd president. From the shadows of the Capitol, he said Congress must join him in answering the voters’ 1992 call. "Today, we pledge that the era of deadlock and drift is over - a new season of American renewal has begun," Clinton declared. "It will not be easy; it will require sacrifice. But it can be done, and done fairly, not choosing sacrifice for its own sake, but for our own sake. We must provide for our nation the way a family provides for its children." In a 14-minute speech that belied his reputation as a long-winded orator, Clinton reiterated his successful campaign themes but - as is traditional- it left new initiatives and policy changes to .speeches yet to come. Untested in foreign affairs, Clinton pledged to uphold America’s global commitments. "When our vital interests are challenged, or the will and conscience of the international community defied, we will act - with peaceful diplomacy when possible, with force when necessary. The brave Americans serving our nation in the Persian Gulf, in Somalia, and wherever else they stand are testament to our resolve." He added, "Today, an old order passes, the new world is more free but less stable. ... Clearly America must continue to lead the world we did so much to make." Thousands packed the Capitol grounds and the historic mall as Clinton assumed the presidency. Looking out at the Washington Monument and his parade route to the White House, Clinton delivered his inaugural address to a nation that voted for change - and to end after one term the presidency of George Bush. "■There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America," Clinton said, vowing to tackle economic problems, the health care crisis, political reform, AIDS and other challenges. "To renew America, we must be bold." Change was the theme of his campaign, and change was his inaugural promise in a speech replete with references to and passages borrowed from his heroes - Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and John F. Kennedy. "Not change for change’s sake, but change to preserve America’s ideals - life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness," Clinton said. "Though we march to the music of our time, our mission is timeless." In his address, the Democratic president marveled at both the historic legacy he inherits and the daunting challenges America faces - at home and abroad - on the verge of the 21st century. "Let us begin anew with energy and hope, with faith and discipline, and let us work until our work is done," Clinton said. The 46-year-old son of Hope, Ark., paid tribute to his predecessor. Bush, for a half- century of public service, turning to Bush with a salute and then leading an ovation for the 68-year-old Bush in his first moments as a former president. Then, Clinton looked forward. In a line reminiscent of John F. Kennedy’s 1961 inaugural, Clinton said it was time for a new generation to accept the mantle of American and global leadership. "Today, a generation raised in the shadows of the Cold War assumes new responsibilities in a world warmed by the sunshine of fr^om but threatened still by ancient hatreds and new plagues," Clinton said. His remarks underscored that he was a presidency borne amid a handful of global crises, as -well as the sluggish economy at home that candidate Clinton pledged would be his top priority. -: : - ' The first Democratic president in 12 years, Clinton called | on NAACP To Meet At Mt. Gilead The Durham Branch NAACRwiil host its January meeting at Ml Gilead Baptist Church, 404 Dowd Street in Durham on Sunday, Janu ary 24, at 4 p.m. The pastor is Rev. Leroy Davis. Judge Carolyn Johnson will install the new TO3- 94 officers at this meeting. The public is invited. ;: Congress to join with him in answering voters’- demands for a government that works, and listens. "Let us give this capital back to the people to whom it belongs." Acknowledging the obstacles in his way - soaring budget deficits and health care costs, a fragile economy, global competition and even voter cynicism about their government, Clinton sought immediately to put an activist but realistic stamp on his new administration. Officials Say Prediction of Haitian Exodus Overblown Although originally intended to run for only six months the Tuskegee study was repeatedly extended. Months grew into years. Over the course of the next few decades nothing seemed able to derail the study: World War II prompted syphilis treatments for recruits; the dis covery of penicillin provided a better easier syphilis treatment; international attention on the atrocities of Nazi human experimentation led to the Nuremberg guidelines to protect future human subjects, and the rise of the civil rights movement helped focus on the conditions of African Americans. Through it all, the Study and the frail of deceit continued. Ironically, there was nothing secret about the Tus kegee Study. Results appeared periodically in medi cal journals. "This was not some mad scientist in the basement," says Vanessa Gamble, professor of medi cine at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. "The medical profession did not see anything wrong with it." Nonetheless, it did not become generally known until a Washington Star story in 1972. Finally there was a public outcry which brought the experiment to an abrupt end. A lawsuit was filed seeking compensa tion for the victims and a soul-searching assessment began that has fueled the national push for tougher guidelines for protecting subjects of human experi mentation. Today the Study also leaves Ungering distrust of the white medical establishment on the part of some Af rican Americans. NOVA, the award-winning weekly science docu- menlary series, is produced for PBS by the WGBH Science Unitund made possible by grants from the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies, Lockheed the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and public television viewers. NOVA is closed captioned for deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers by The Candon Center at WGBH. "The Deadly Deception" was produced by Denisce Dilanni, whose previous credits for the series include films on the science of art forgery and the 1989 Alas kan oil spill. The director of the WGBH Science Unit and execu tive producer of NOVA is Paula Apsell. By David Beard Associated Press Writer PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) - Predictions of an exodus of up to 250,000 Haitians toward U.S. shores when President-elect Clinton is sworn in appear to be overblown, U.S. and refugee officials said Saturday. Several Haitian officials said the predictions reflect the longstanding anxieties of south Floridians and U.S. policymakers about this Creole-speaking Caribbean nation, more than a real threat of a refugee flood. The Coast Guard’s liaison in Port-au-Prince, Cmdr. Larry Mizell, said he expects some increase in Haitians leaving after Clinton takes office, but hesitated to compare the exodus with May, when Resident Bush ordered all boat people to be quickly returned. Clinton had criticized Bush’s policy as inhumane. On Thursday, he decided to continue it. On Friday, the Coast Guard, Navy and Marines launched an operation to dispatch up to 22 warships, cutters and pafrol boats. Clinton’s announcement, and the flotilla, will reduce the refugee flow, Mizell said at dockside Saturday. Two or three cutters normally patrol the 600-miIe route from Haiti to southern Florida. "I think they’ll still be a surge, but I don’t think it will be long term,” he said before leaving with a Pentagon analyst on a weekend survey of boats being built along Haiti’s coasts. The return of 212 boat people Saturday brought to 680 the number of Haitians repatriated last week. It was the highest weekly total since early December. But Mizell noted: "One way to put it in perspective is to understand that in one day in May - at the height of it - we picked up 1,300 boat people." Lt. Joe Robinson, second-in-command of the cutter Confidence, agreed. "This is regular hours," he said. "In May - that was work." Several factors limit the number of Haitians who could take to sea. Coast Guard cutters routinely bum or sink the jerry-built refugee boats, to prevent them from being reused. Most Haitians earn less than $100 a year, putting the cost of passage aboard a boat beyond their reach. More than 40,000 refugees have been intercepted since a September 1991 coup that ousted President Jean-Berfrand Aristide. That figure may include many people who attempted the voyage more than once. Even accepting that 40,000 of Haiti’s 6.5 million people fled, the figure is probably equal or lower than the number of migrants in the same period from the Dominican Republic, which shares the Caribbean island of Hispaniola. Estimates by U.S. Rep. Robert Torrecelli and the Pentagon that as many as 250,000 Haitians would flee soon are considered heavily exaggerated. "This figure is ridiculous. There’s not a real danger. It’s a politically inspired intoxication and disinformation," said Paul Dejean, an Aristide supporter. A Coast Guard report of more than 700 boats under construction come fed the anxieties of Floridians who suffered through Hurricane Andrew and witnessed the 1980 influx of 155,(X)0 Ciib.oi'e during the Mariel boatlift. The Coast Guard report was based on aerial surveys that did not determine how many of the vessels were for fishing or freight. Dejean blamed the United States for the panic, but both Aristide supporters and the millBry-backcd government have overstated the threat in recent months, seeking leverage in their battle over Haiti’s , political future. Haitians on the beaches and in streets of the capital over the past three days have said they believe many countrymen will stay home for now, giving Clinton a chance to make good on his pledge to help restore Haiti’s democracy. But without signs of progress within weeks, many may indeed consider taking to boats to flee the economic devastation and political persecution of the military and rural chiefs. America’s perception of the refugee threat is colored by misunderstandings that have plagued Haiti since a slave rebellion made it the hemisphere’s second independent nation in 1804. Bigoted Western reports often focused on vrxxloo. Over the past decade, Haitians have been targeted unjustly as an origin group for AIDS, a campaign that helped destroy the Caribbean nation’s tourism indusfry. Confounding notions of an entire wretched nation bursting to sail away, social pressure to stay in Haiti is actually very strong. Many Haitians keep their escape plans secret even fromptheir families. "People here are attached to their land and their dignity," said Marlene Dorfeuille, director of the private Permanent Refugee Service.
The Carolina Times (Durham, N.C.)
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Jan. 23, 1993, edition 1
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