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You may know the name J.M Sims as the 'father of gynaecology' but do you know Anarcha Westcott? Anarcha was an enslaved 17-year-old girl that endured 30 experimental surgeries, without anaesthetic or her consent. Her ordeal became Sims' legacy. (Thread) #BlackHistoryMonth 
In 1845 Anarcha suffered vesicovaginal and rectovaginal fistulas after labouring for three days. We don't know if this was her first pregnancy or if she went on to have other children, but the child died in labour and Anarcha was left with life-threatening grievous injuries.
Her captors were not interested in her wellbeing. Rickets and vitamin D deficiency brought on by prolonged malnutrition had deformed her pelvic bone which was part of the cause of her condition. They called Sims in to ensure their propriety would continue to breed more slaves.
It is true that Anarcha would have died without intervention but she was also not consulted. She did not know what was happening to her. She didn't know this was an experiment. She didn't know Sims wouldn't give her ether. That he thought Black women didn't feel pain like whites
Anarcha was given opium after but the procedures could last for hours. She endured these torturous surgeries for years along with other enslaved women, particularly two women identified just as Lucy and Betsey. We know even less about them.
After she left Dr Sims medical notes, we don't know what happened to Anarcha. We don't know when she died. We don't know who loved and mourned her. Sims went on to notoriety for his groundbreaking procedure, however.
In the 1930s statues of Sims began popping up all over the US nearly 50 years after his death. While the story of Anarcha, Lucy, Betsey and the other enslaved people that were used for medical experiments became a footnote in medical books. https://www.npr.org/2017/02/07/513764158/remembering-anarcha-lucy-and-betsey-the-mothers-of-modern-gynecology
It is only because of the sustained work of predominantly Black femme academics and activists that Anarcha's story has been pushed to the forefront and Sims fame has been challenged. https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/04/17/603163394/-father-of-gynecology-who-experimented-on-slaves-no-longer-on-pedestal-in-nyc
In the last 5 years, Sims statues have gone down in many places but the one statue of Anarcha erected across from Sims' on the Alabama State House grounds was stolen within 48 hours of it going up. https://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/opinion/2018/09/28/dr-j-marion-sims-and-civil-war-rollicking-tale-deceit-and-spycraft-slaves-experiments/1443452002/
The fight for #reproductivejustice for Black people that give birth and babies continues to this day and you should follow some of these amazing people doing this hard and meaningful work. @BlkMamasMatter @DarlineDoula @SisterSong_WOC @Sister_Doc
