Margaret Sanger and the Nazis: How Many Degrees of Separation?

Abstract

One of the more pervasive features of our current poMtical culture is the Nazificatiori of one's political or ideological opponents. It seems scarcely a week goes by when some group isn't making a concerted effort to demonstrate v/hv its opposition bears more than a passing resemblance to Adolf Hitler or the Nazis. In an era that is increasingly characterized by absolutes, sweeping subjectivity, and an inability or unwulingness to find common ground or engage in critical thought, the tendency to radicalize the opposition naturally leads to the most extreme limits of human behavior. Among the most frequent targets of this Nazification in recent decades has been Margaret Sanger and, by association. Planned Parenthood. The syllogism that we most often find looks something like this: • Planned Parenthood was founded and primarily influenced by Margaret Sanger. • Margaret Sanger was a leading figure in the eugenics movement in the United States. • The eugerjcs movement in this country strongly influenced Nazi eugenics, and thus the Holocaust. • Therefore, a strong association exists between M. Sanger (and therefore Planned Parenthood) and the horrors of Nazism.