The Carceral Cornea: Death Row 'Donation' in Mid-Twentieth Century America

In the 1930s advances in corneal replacement surgery gave fresh hope to some 200,000 blind Americans. But acquiring the necessary biomaterial proved challenging for surgeons and patients alike. Some people quickly turned to men awaiting execution, writing letters imploring them in life to allow the post-mortem removal of their eyes for the benefit of others. Between 1938 and 1967 more than 60 men on death row either signed pledges or composed wills that authorized surgeons to use their corneas in sight-restoring transplant procedures. This talk examines the ways in which prison inmates became a source of therapeutic material in the middle decades of the 20th century and how some inmates not only promoted cornea donation behind bars but also coordinated prisoner participation in the massive blood collection efforts viewed as essential to the war effort. It considers both representations of prisoner ‘donors’ and the opportunities for “atonement,” as well as the cultural trope of “seeing through a murderer’s eye.” Amid the durable shortage of viable organs, some prisoners, transplant surgeons, and bioethicists have advocated allowing expanded opportunities for inmate organ donation.

This event is co-hosted by the Southern California Society for the History of Medicine and The Huntington.

Top image: Fadler, Joseph, Man having his eyes examined. Southern California Edison Collection | The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens