February is Black History Month; usually this time is spent remembering African Americans who have been influential in breaking down the color barrier. While many of the African Americans that are celebrated at this time are household names such as Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. or Rosa Parks there are many others who are rarely recognized for their contributions to African American History.
On February 23, Hastings College hosted a Black History Month guest speaker, Linda R. Crump, J.D. Crump was the first African American woman to head the Nebraska Bar Association and is now the Assistant to the Chancellor for Equality, Access, and Diversity Programs at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. While Crump could have spoken on her own impressive career she chose instead to give a program titled, What are HeLa Cells and Why Should We Care? Crump's program was about an African American woman that most people have never heard of, Henrietta Lacks.
The name HeLa Cell derives from the first two letters of Lacks first and last name. The cells were taken from Lacks when she was undergoing treatment for cervical cancer in 1951 after her death that same year John Hopkins Hospital where she was a patient, gave the cells to George Gey. Gey was a researcher who was attempting to successfully reproduce human cells.
Up until this point Gey's attempts had been unsuccessful, however Lacks's cells were what some have called miracle cells and they began to reproduce at a startling rate. Gey then gave these amazing cells to researchers all over the world. HeLa Cells instantly became instrumental in scientific advancements. HeLa Cells were used to help develop a vaccine for Polio as well as many other pharmaceuticals; they were also the first human cells to be sent into outer space.
Crump described African Americans as the 1950's throw away population . Lacks's was treated for cancer in the black hospital wing and she was not treated in the same way that a white woman would have been treated at this time, yet her cells live on even today, helping people of all races. Her family was never notified that her cells were being used. Her husband and children found out years later.
When they found out they were angry that they were living in poverty while their wife and mother's cells were being used for science and that companies were making millions of dollars thanks to Lacks's cells.
Though the family has never received money for the use of Lacks's cells, her daughter who was only four when Lacks died has come to terms with her mothers cells being used for research. She finds comfort in knowing that through her mother an innumerable about of lives have been saved.
Crump ended her program by stating that while racism is not in the forefront of news or politics there still remains a subtle racism . She urged everyone in attendance to take an active role in preventing racism through small individual acts.
To learn more about Lacks's cells and family read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.
