HSBC Speaker Series - Zoom Online Talk

MRS. HENRIETTA LACKS AND TURNER STATION: RESTORING HISTORICAL ERASURES 

Dr. Adele Newson-Horst, Morgan State University, Henrietta Lacks Legacy Group

Servant Courtney Leigh Speed, Henrietta Lacks Legacy Group

Saturday, October 17, 2020, from 2 to 4 pm

Henrietta Lacks is best recognized for her immortal HeLa cells, as they are known in the medical research complex. These cells were named HeLa after the first two letters of her first and last names.  Polio was the first disease conquered with the use of her cells and advanced research for influenza, cancer, Parkinson’s disease, and leukemia were major contributions to medicine developed from the HeLa cells. Because her identity was concealed for decades, the Henrietta Lacks story raises ethical, racial, and socio-economic issues related to the medical industrial complex.  Mrs. Lacks’ story is not complete without a history of Turner Station (where she resided at the time of her death). 

Dr. Adele Newson-Horst is a professor of English and the coordinator of Women’s and Gender Studies at MSU.  She earned the B.A. from Spelman College, the M.A. from Eastern Michigan University, and the PhD from Michigan State University.  Her books and articles focus on the literature of African, African American, Middle Eastern, and Caribbean women writers.  She is also the vice-president of the Henrietta Lacks Legacy Group (HLLG). 

Servant Courtney Leigh Speed is a long time resident of and business woman in Turner Station, MD.  She has been advocating for the recognition of Mrs. Lacks and historic Turner Station for over 40 years.  She works to ensure that the legacy of Henrietta Lacks is known world-wide, and she was first recognized by the BBC who came to her to research the story of Mrs. Lacks in the later 1970s.  She is the founder and president of the Henrietta Lacks Legacy Group and regularly conducts tours of Turner Station. 

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Part of our Speakers Series. Admission: FREE to HSBC members; Non-members also FREE, Registration required

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Location: Note  this is a virtual presentation hosted on Zoom ONLY. 

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