For certain eugenicists, sterilization was considered a valid part of the "solution" to ending the "menace of the feebleminded" in America. These eugenicists believed that by halting the reproductive capabilities of the "feebleminded" and "defective," their genetic traits would not be passed on to further generations, and over time would therefore be eradicated from American society. Despite advances in biological understanding of heredity--that the passing on of genetic traits is much more complicated than that--eugenic advocates nevertheless ignored those findings and carried on.

Between 1907 and 1968, an estimated 60,000 men and women deemed "feebleminded" and "defective" were sterilized in the United States.¹ According to historian Phillip R. Reilly, "at best only a tiny fraction of such persons consented to the surgery."² Leading eugenicists like Harry Laughlin and eugenics organizations such as the Eugenics Records Office (ERO) were integral in the early 1900's in promoting and lobbying for sterilization laws, and in creating testing methods and techniques that were used to determine whether a person were an appropriate candidate for sterilization. The IQ Test, for example, which is discussed in detail in this section, was one such determinant.

As with immigration laws, eugenicists in the U.S. knew that their most powerful tool for spreading the ideas and practices of eugenics was the legal system. In 1907, Indiana became the first state to permit "confirmed criminals, idiots, imbeciles, and rapists" to be involuntarily sterilized if a committee of experts decided that these individuals should be prevented from having children.³ By 1924, 21 states had laws permitting involuntary sterilization and at least 4,000 individuals had been sterilized. The impetus to pass these laws came from eugenicists like Harry Laughlin, who in 1914 wrote a Model Sterilization Law (read an excerpt) that was circulated widely in the United States and Europe. He also testified personally before state legislatures that were considering the passage of sterilization laws or arranged for other eugenicists to do so. Their scientific expertise and prestige had an impact on lawmakers.

From the start, sterilization laws were controversial in the courts. In seven states, local and state judges overturned these laws. A number of them argued that they violated the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which grants every citizen due process and equal protection under the law. Other judges noted that the laws unfairly singled out "feebleminded persons" in state institutions for sterilization, while leaving other individuals who were mentally defective alone. Still others believed that sterilization violated the Eighth Amendment , which bans "cruel and unusual punishments." Nevertheless, the legacy of eugenics and sterilization was profound in the U.S. and it is important to note many of the state laws were not overturned for decades, long after eugenics had been discredited.